School resumption: Fumigation does not kill COVID-19 — Private Schools

School resumption: Fumigation does not kill COVID-19 — Private Schools

Vice President of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, NAPPS, South-South, Dr. Akpeme Ochukwu, has faulted the compulsory fumigation of schools before resumption as directed by the state governments, stressing that it does not kill COVID-19.

Recalled that the Delta State government announced that JSS3 and SSS3 students should resume academic activities to enable them to prepared for their external exams ahead.

Akpeme who is the proprietor of Standard Group of Schools, Delta State, told Vanguard that he sees no reason why the state government is saying that all schools must be fumigated knowing fully well that it has no correlation with COVID-19.

He lamented that since the lockdown occasioned by the COVID-19, the Federal and state governments have not deemed it fit to assist private school proprietors who he said has have reduced the level of unemployment in the country.

“As a stakeholder in the education industry, and as someone who has travelled wide, I can tell you categorically that fumigation has no correlation with COVID-19. It does not kill COVID-19. So I see no reason why the government is emphasizing it. I am doing it now just to fulfill all righteousness, if not I have done before.

“One major challenge we have in the private schools is the unseriousness and lack of concern of the government on the affairs of private schools.

“The government has failed to realise that private schools pupils are Nigerians. For almost five months now since we closed our schools, the government has not done anything for us. I have a friend in another part of the world who are teachers in private schools. They are well taken care of by their government during the lockdown.

“Like I keep telling people if it were not for private schools the unemployment rate in the country would have been worst than what we are having now.”

Some of the schools visited by our correspondent saw an average turnout of students and some of the teachers reporting early to schools.

Vice Principal of Uwangwe Secondary School, Warri, Mr. Benjamin Akpobasa, said they were ready for the resumption of schools noting that the state government has provided some of the things they needed for the schools to resume.

He said, “Government has provided some material like facemasks, detergents and hand sanitizers for us.

Also, Dr. Ochuko Ushure, Zonal Coordinator, Institute of Continuing Education (ICE), Warri Zone said that the school had observed all the protocols provided by the government.

“We have buckets, water, soap, hand sanitisers at various locations in the school premises for the students to wash their hands. We also ensure that they maintain social distancing, before resumption, we ensure that the classrooms are clean with soap and water.