Schools should resume in three months- House of Representatives

The lower chamber of Nigeria’s national assembly, the House of Representatives, has kicked against the resumption of schools by January 18, 2021, due to the increase in the number of positive COVID-19 cases in the country. The chamber proposed a three-month suspension of school activities and disclosed that relevant committees of the National Assembly were not consulted by government officials before fixing January 18 as resumption date.

Reacting to the issue, Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, who is the Chairman of the House Committee on Basic Education and Services, noted:

They did not consult us; at least in my committee, nobody from the ministry spoke to me. I have been in Abuja. And I am not sure that they spoke to any of my members. They just don’t see us as part of the critical stakeholders.

Prof. Julius Ihonvbere

Commenting further in an official statement titled “School resumption: Are we truly prepared?,”  Prof. Ihonvbere questioned the motive behind the rush to resume schools as the virus is fast spreading.

The Committee on Basic Education and Services, House of Representatives, has received with concern the decision of the Federal Government to reopen schools on January 18, 2021. We are particularly concerned that when the infection rates hovered around 500 and under, schools were closed; but now that it hovers well above 1,000 infections daily, schools are being reopened. Why are we rushing to reopen schools without adequate verifiable and sustainable arrangements to protect and secure our children?

Prof. Julius Ihonvbere

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Linda IkejiFeatured Image Source: Naija News Feed