Benue education sector faces scrutiny

Last week, the Benue State Education Quality Assurance Agency (BEQA) revealed alarming statistics that only 150 out of 6,000 private schools in the state are being certified.

The revelation has no doubt brought the Benue State’s educational sector under scrutiny, raising questions about the oversight and regulatory processes that have been in place over the years.

Dr. Terna Francis, the Director General of BEQA, who made the revelation during a meeting with education stakeholders, including representatives from the Benue State Urban Development Board and the Board of Internal Revenue Service (BIRS), also warned parents to remove their children from uncertified schools.

Francis’ disclosure has sparked concerns about the standards and quality of education provided in the majority of private schools in the state, with stakeholders and the public alike questioning how so many institutions have managed to operate without proper certification.

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Already, some of the affected schools such as the Kings International Nursery and Primary school, Orido – Otukpa in Ogbadigbo Local Government Area have started efforts to meet up with the BEQA demands before the next academic session.

The BEQA boss however as the situation unfolds, maintained the need for the Benue educational sector – secondary and primary schools – to be sanitised even as he pushes for the sector’s reform and stricter enforcement of regulations.

He expressed worry that ongoing efforts to raise the bar for educational standards in the state were faced with the large number of schools operating without either proper certification or in a dilapidated structure and unfit environment.

Therefore, as part of the state’s crackdown on substandard education facilities, he noted that starting in September, all school buildings must undergo integrity tests and schools that fail to meet the required standards will be shut down.

Similarly, all new schools will now need clearance from the Urban Development Board before BEQA grants final approval just as he assured, that the process has been streamlined. 

Currently, in response to the revelation, the government plans to demolish over 2,000 schools, both public and private. Most of these institutions are privately owned and have reportedly failed to meet the required building standards.

The Director-General of BEQA, said they are taking proactive steps to avoid school collapse in the state, especially with the recent incidents, which happened in Abuja and Plateau State respectively.

“Our first step is to sensitise stakeholders on the importance of adhering strictly to established building standards.

“Schools operating in unsafe structures should relocate to safer buildings. We’re not rushing into demolition; instead, we’re giving them time to comply so that we can avoid any loss of life. The general manager of Urban Development has requested that building plans be submitted by the end of September.”

He further disclosed that 2,416 schools have been identified as lacking the necessary approval from the Benue State government to operate.

“So far, we have cleared only 150 schools and issued them certificates of consent. We urge others to come forward and ensure they meet the required standards,” he added.

He said BEQA will soon launch an investigation into how some schools managed to obtain approval despite being clearly substandard.

“There are schools that secured approval through improper channels and are now operating. In some cases, you’ll find three different classes crammed into a single room, with Basic 1 facing one direction, Basic 2 facing another, and Basic 3 in yet another direction.

“We have schools that resemble poultry farms, yet these institutions somehow received approval. We intend to investigate how they were granted the licenses to operate with such inadequate structures,” the director general remarked.

Meanwhile, the General Manager of the Urban Development Board, Ternongo Mede, stressed the importance of adhering to operational standards, noting that student safety remains a top government priority.

On the other hand, Emmanuel Agema, Chairman of the Board of Internal Revenue, represented by Barr. Ushahemba Francis Dekaa, stressed the need for all revenue to be properly accounted for in government records.

Some education stakeholders such as Reverend Father Peter Apagher of Catholic Education Services, and Hajia Zainab Adamu Usman, representing Jama’atu Nasril Islam schools, voiced their support for the closure of unapproved schools.

The National Chairman, National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Ojo Sunday Adah, appealed to the government to take the decision of closure and demolition gradually, pointing out that schools take time to mature even as he agreed with the government on substandard of some schools.

“On the issue of standards, we agree with the government that schools’ standards should be stepped up and we are going to talk to our members to run the schools based on the precepts of developing educational standards as contained in our national curriculum.

“All schools are not of equal standards. We have schools based in urban areas; we have schools based in rural areas. So, when you generalise the tax, the schools in rural areas will suffer and we have seen they are suffering.

“There are areas where the government cannot put up a structure, it is private schools that are managing education in that sector”.

The NAPPS chairman added that as schools are warming up to reopen in September, proprietors should endeavour to withdraw learners from dilapidated structures that have cracks and could pose danger to occupants while he asked the state government to extend the hard measure to public schools, saying: “Let the searchlight not be on private schools alone.”

However, some proprietors of such schools have started efforts to bring them up to standard.

Proprietor of Kings Int’l NPS Orido, Otukpa, Umoru John, told our correspondent on telephone that he was already at the peak of finishing a new school building to meet the standard requirement for operating in a conducive learning environment.

He said, “I am currently working on securing Phase II approval. I received Phase I approval, but I couldn’t complete construction at that time. The project is now in its final stages. I plan to be in Makurdi next week to finalise this phase before the new session begins”.

As the debate continues, some parents have voiced their opinions, with some arguing that demolishing schools would not be a wise decision but that schools should be encouraged to upgrade, as usual practice in responsive governance while others, however, found the argument in favour of demolition to be valid.

Edeh Ogoh suggested that the government should shut down the schools temporarily rather than demolish them outright.

Geoffrey Terungwa agreed with Ogoh, saying, “Demolishing schools shouldn’t be the first option. It’s important to consider the potential consequences on students and the community. Upgrading standards and improving existing infrastructure could be a more effective and beneficial solution.”

In the meantime, BEQA Director General Francis has firmly asserted that schools in the state must either meet quality standards or cease operations because his administration would ensure that the proper standards are upheld.