The Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Education has expressed shock over the disparity between schools in the urban and rural areas of the state, saying the state Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) must bridge the gap.
The State Chairman House of Assembly Committee on Education, Lanre Ogunyemi who made this disclosure during a visit to SUBEB office in Maryland as part of the committee oversight function, said basic education is fundamental to the development of the state and the country at large.
Ogunyemi manitained that the essence of the board is for children to have access to quality education regardless of where they are.
“I am from a constituency, where most schools are in the riverine areas are not well equipped. We should ensure that children in riverine and rural areas also enjoy quality education like their counterparts in the urban areas. Staffing is also important, teachers in riverine areas must be encouraged to work there and the schools must not have dilapidated structures.
“We need to do more on personnel and infrastructure and we must ensure that our schools are what they should be. Our worst schools in Lagos State should compare with the best in other states of the federation,” he said.
The lawmaker who is representing Ojo constituency II, urged the board to ensure minimum standard while observing that the task of the board was onerous.
While appealing to the Board to always carry the committee along in its operations, Ogunyemi gave assurance that the committee was ready to provide the necessary legislative framework for the board to function effectively.
“We are here in line with our constitutional role of performing oversight functions. We are empowered to appropriate funds for MDAs and we ensure the judicious usage of the funds.
“We believe that education is very important and central to development. It is the foundation for every sphere of development. Our future depends on our education, we must get it right rather than paying lip service to its development.
On security, Ogunyemi explained that adequate security is being put in place in all the schools in the state, and advised owners of private schools to intensify security in the schools premises.
“We were in the state Model College in Meran recently and we saw the kind of security they have, and they are also working with the community to secure the school. The state government is doing its best on security in our schools,” he said.
Responding, the Chairman of SUBEB, Dr. Ganiyu Oluremi Sopeyin said that the board had some challenges, but had come up with development plans for education in the state.
He said that the board had to key into the vision of the state Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode on education, noting that training is being organized for teaching and non-teaching staff to develop their skills.
“As part of moving education forward, the board and the management visit two schools on a day from Mondays to Fridays and this is yielding results. We believe that when we continue with this, a lot would be done. Parts of the challenges is the dilapidated structures in the schools and the Governor is addressing this. He told us to give him the cost of repairing those schools.
“Recently, two schools were repaired by the state government in Badagry. The challenge we have here in our office is basically accommodation problem, but we will not allow this to weaken us. We met some corporate organizations and majority of them are willing to assist in repairing the facilities and the roads,” he said.
He promised that corporate organizations are also supporting the board to repair the schools and that many Lagos State schools would soon be better than some private schools.
While expressing his happiness for the visit, Sopeyin added that they would ensure best practices in the public schools and also take a look at pieces of advice given by the committee.