Enugu -Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State has said that the prevailing infrastructure deficit and environment of public schools in the state do not guarantee quality education.
Speaking when he addressed stakeholders in the sector at a one-day education summit for school principals and teachers in Enugu on Thursday, Ugwuanyi said that the level of decay and low morale in public schools was shocking.
“During the first two weeks of our administration, I paid unscheduled visits to schools in the state and was shocked at the infrastructure and general environment of our schools.
“I wonder how we as a state will make sustainable progress when our children and future leaders are allowed to study under such dismal condition,” he said.
Ugwuanyi said that the prevailing circumstance necessitated him to constitute a committee to ameliorate the situation and ensure that students studied under a conducive environment.
He said that the improvement of the standard of education in the state would be a cardinal objective of his administration “as we are convinced that education is the bedrock of any society.
“We intend to address the multiple issues that have continued to weigh down our progress in the sector through some of the interventions we intend to make.
“This forum offers stakeholders the opportunity to identify and proffer solutions to the factors responsible for the challenges in the sector.
“You need to come up with the level of infrastructure we need to make the system work,” Ugwuanyi said.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Education, Prof. Uche Eze, regretted that in spite of the huge investments made by the state government in the sector, there was nothing on ground to show.
Eze identified indiscipline as the bane of the sector, adding that teachers had aided the collapse of the system.
“The signals from stakeholders, especially the employers of labour, do not show that we are making the required progress.
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“Our school system has witnessed retrogression in many aspects and what we have on ground seems to be far from what our children deserve,’’ he said.
The commissioner said that all the stakeholders must collaborate to ensure the sustenance of the sector, adding that educational policies must be implemented for the benefit of the students.
“Available statistics show that there is over-concentration of teachers in the urban schools to the detriment of rural schools.
“A committee has been set up to determine the teacher requirements of every school to re-distribute them appropriately,” he said.
The commissioner said that the teachers must be ready to accept new postings.
“The new dispensation demands for a new mind set, a new attitude and a new way of doing things that will yield the desired results.
“You must see the children under your care as your own children and must always be ready to give them the best in terms of quality learning and proper discipline,” Eze said. (NAN)
