A member of the Board of Trustees of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Buba Galadima, has called on the Federal Government not to close schools due to insecurity, but to focus instead on protecting them.
Galadima made the appeal on Monday during an interview on Arise Television.
The NNPP chieftain also noted the challenge faced by state governments in striking a balance between safeguarding students from insecurity and ensuring they receive the education they deserve.
“In the first place, it is shameful to close down the schools. It’s shameful on the government, and every person in the administration and us. You cannot close down schools. What you will do is how to protect the schools,” he said.
He said the government should move beyond relying solely on physical security and instead deploy technology to safeguard Nigerians.
“The government should forget about physical security; we have passed that stage. We need to deploy technology to detect things even before they happen. We also need to set up special squads to deal with issues even before they spring up,” the NNPP chieftain said.
Recall that, following a resurgence in the abduction of students in some parts of the country, the Federal Government recently ordered the closure of 41 unity colleges with immediate effect.
In a statement signed by the Director of Senior Secondary Education, Hajiya Binta Abdulkadir, on behalf of the Honourable Minister, the closure was described as a precautionary measure to prevent possible breaches of security in the listed schools. Principals of the affected schools were directed to comply without delay.
