Despite huge financial allocation yearly, most primary and secondary schools in Nasarawa State are still begging for attention as pupils and students still sit under trees and on bare floors to receive lessons.
This reporter, who visited schools across the state, observed that students and pupils are still subjected to harsh learning environment due to lack of instructional materials and other facilities necessary for conducive learning.
In 2021, then commissioner of Finance, Budget and Planning, Mr Haruna Ogbole, while briefing newsmen, said the state government earmarked N35.4 billion for the education sector, adding that the amount represented 30 per cent of the 2021 state budget.
He said education was a priority of the state government which informed the reason for the huge allocation in its 2021 budget in compliance with UNESCO’s recommendation.
Similarly, the new Commissioner of Finance, Budget and Planning, Mr Daniel Agyeno, while addressing journalists during the 2022 budget breakdown, revealed that the state government allocated N31.9 billion of its 2022 budget to education in compliance with UNESCO’s recommendation.
However, Daily Trust checks showed that a lot is yet to be done despite the huge allocation to the education sector.
In TA’AL Modern Nursery and Primary School in Lafia, the state capital, 90 per cent of pupils from primary one to six were seen sitting on the bare floor to receive lessons.
Daily Trust reports that TA’AL Modern School was commissioned by then President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in July in Lafia in 2013.
Our correspondent, who visited the school, however, observed that all the pupils were sitting on the bare floor to receive lessons.
In one of the classes, it was observed that some pupils were sitting on a sack spread on the floor while others sat on the floor.
A source from the school, who pleaded anonymity, told our correspondent that a series of complaints concerning how the pupils have been subjected to harsh learning environment were forwarded to both the state government and Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) but nothing has been done.
“Our pupils have been subjected to a harsh learning environment. Imagine this kind of situation they were forced to learn in, do you think that they will assimilate or comprehend what their teachers are teaching them?” the source asked.
Another source from the school, who also didn’t want his name in print, said the desks and chairs that were brought during the inauguration of the school were all taken away to unknown destinations, adding that only a few of them were left, a situation the source described as a wicked act.
He said: “Just three weeks ago the Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Mrs. Fati Jimeta Sabo, visited the school and saw the harsh condition the pupils were subjected to for learning.”
The commissioner, according to him, promised that in the next intervention the school would get allocation of infrastructural and learning materials for the pupils.
He also revealed that the permanent member of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUEB), Mr Muhammed Ismail, visited the school to take inventory of the infrastructure and materials.
“He came to pay a lip service to the pupils and nothing has been done to that effect,” he said.
However, it was gathered that about 30 desks, including tables, and chairs which the pupils are using presently were bought by the teachers.
Our correspondent also observed that some pupils were outside the classroom copying their notes because there were no adequate infrastructural and learning materials while some of the teachers were sitting under a tree.
When contacted on phone, the Executive Chairman of Nasarawa State Universal Basic Education Board, (NSUBEB), Mr. Muhammad Dan’ Azimi, said the board lacked furniture due to the guidelines given by UBEB intervention.
He revealed that only 240 units of furniture were given in the 2020 and 2021 interventions across the 1,441 public primary schools in the 13 local government areas of the state, excluding junior secondary schools under the Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB).
The chairman, who spoke through the NSUBEB, acting head of Physical Planning Unit, Mr. Jimmy Mburu Mangai, explained that the board had written a proposal to UBEB to enable it to get additional furniture.
He said in 2019, only 10,200 units of furniture were given to primary schools in the state, which he said were not adequate.
“The guidelines given by UBEB in 2020 and 2021 intervention is just 20 per cent allotted to all TA’AL Modern Nursery and Primary schools which is grossly inadequate to go round all the schools under SUBEB in the state,” he said.
He added that the chairman of the board, Dan’ Azimi had presented the case before the state government to address the persistent furniture problem in schools under SUBEB.
Meanwhile, effort to reach the commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Mrs Fati Jimeta Sabo, to get her own comment proved abortive, as she neither returned calls to her mobile line nor replied to a text message sent to her as of the time of filing in this report.
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