National President, National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, Chief Yomi Otubela, has indicated private schools’ readiness for resumption all over the country.
According to him, NAPPS, as a responsive and responsible association, has shown its readiness to ensure the safe phased reopening of schools for JSS3 and SSS3 students in private schools in the country by ensuring member schools strictly adhere to the safety protocols recommended by Nigeria Center for Disease Control to prevent the spread of COVID-19 within the school environments.
He stated this at a virtual press briefing organised by the association.
Otubela added that in compliance to the Federal Government’s directives, over 30,000 schools under its umbrella had made available in their various schools running water and soap for hand washing, Infra-red thermometers to monitor staff, students and visitors temperature, Sick Bay to be managed by qualified health personnel.
He said they had also put in place sensitisation workshop for teaching and non-teaching staff, provision of Alcohol-based hand sanitizer, the seating arrangement of 2 meters distance from each other both in classes and school buses, provision of face masks for staff, enforcement of face masks for students, visitors, regular washing of surfaces, decontamination of school environment and provision of Personal Protective Equipment to prevent the spread of COVID-19 within the school environments.
The NAPPS President said, “It should also be noted that our members had also attended various virtual sensitisation programmes on ways to maintain safe and healthy school environments to prevent the spread of COVID- 19.
“To this end, private schools are fully prepared for school reopening with various safety materials affordably provided to safeguard the health of individuals within the school environments coupled with strict adherence to safety guidelines.”
On the suspension of the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination, organised by WAEC, and other examinations, the NAPPS President said the Board of Trustees and National Executive Council of NAPPS met online on Friday, 10th July 2020, and came up with the position that private schools were ready for reopening of schools with standard safety protocols in place to prevent the spread of Coronavirus within the school premises.
“We also agreed with stakeholders for the phased reopening of schools for JSS3 and SSS3 students only with strict observance of the safety protocols within the school environment. Private Schools under NAPPS are ready to resume with strict adherence to the safety protocols advised by the NCDC,” he stressed.
He said the country should avoid a situation where Nigerian students would be forced to seek an alternative way of writing these examinations by approaching neighbouring countries such as Ghana among others, which would not be good for the image of the country.
“As a result of a prolonged closure, the majority of students may likely lose interest in education and embrace social vices inimical to their wellbeing and public safety as well,” he noted.
