‘Lagos Preparing Modalities for Reopening of Schools’

The Lagos State Commissioner for Education, Mrs. Folashade Adsfisayo, has said the state was preparing modalities for reopening of schools, noting that it was still considering the safety of the children.

Adefisayo who spoke to journalists at the inauguration of the school feeding programme, in Lagos, said the state was already making efforts to achieve this, adding that once the federal government gives directives, it will obey it.

According to her, “Nobody is happy about schools closure, we want the schools to open as soon as possible. It’s just that we have to watch the pandemic and put the safety of the children first. The Presidential Task Force (PTF) has denied that they gave a timeline for schools resumption, but as it were, we can’t sit down and be looking, we must prepare the protocols for re-opening of schools. We have started and we are almost done with it.”

She disclosed that the state was planning to distribute transistor radios to public school pupils who were unable to access internet to enhance their learning on its radio/TV programme, adding that the distribution would commence May 25.

“We have already purchased the radios and people have donated towards it for us. It’s is a private donation, which is not from the state coffers, even our staff also donated,” the commissioner said, adding that it was also working on giving private teachers palliatives.

“The problem is that there is diffusion because they are so many. If we give it to the school owners, we must have a method of ensuring that it gets to the teachers. If you give a school, it is not for the proprietors alone, it is for the teachers and staff, we are working on it.”

Earlier in her remarks, she emphasised on the modified school feeding programme saying it was a continuation of the existing programme of the state government.