Follow Us on Google
Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
Public school teachers in Ogun state, on Tuesday, gave conditions to be met by the government before they can return to class when schools are eventually reopened.
Listing the conditions during a chat with journalists in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, the state chairman of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) Titilope Adebanjo, demanded provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), infrared thermometers, hand sanitizers, among others, for public schools across Ogun.
While insisting the conditions must be met before schools can reopen in the state, Adebanjo,y added that disinfection of school premises, provision of running water, training of teachers on how to use the thermometers and standby health personnel within a one kilometer radius of schools must be ensured by the government.
The NUT chairman disclosed that the conditions are contained in a position paper presented to the government on how best to ensure safe reopening of schools without jeopardising the health of the students.
He dispelled the rumour making the rounds that public school teachers are not ready to resume work, insisting that, teachers are tired of staying at home and ready for school reopening.
“As a union, we know that we have a responsibility and this necessitated us to present a position paper to Ogun state government as we are looking forward for reopening of our schools.
“We hear some opinions somewhere that teachers in public schools are not ready to go back to work. We are saying emphatically that our teachers are ready to go back to work. In fact, we are tired of staying at home.
“The first on the list is to make sure that the government to fumigate every part of the school environment. And we put it to them also to make sure that they provide infrared thermometers to all our schools at least to get the temperature of our students.
“We put it across to them also to make sure that they train our teachers in line with the position of this COVID-19. The training of teachers is very, very important, so that when teachers are trained to use these thermometers they can also read them and even to observe a pupil or a student that is having issue medically or the other.
“Another thing is to make provision for potable water, running one for that matter available in all our schools, along with soaps and alcohol based sanitizers. All these must be on ground before schools are reopened.
“We also recommended to them that at least within a kilometer of a school, there must be a health personnel that in case if there is an emergency, we can easily report to them. We are teachers we are not doctors, we are not nurses. But the most important thing is make sure that PPE is readily available in our schools”, Adebanjo added.
He urged parents to provide face masks for their children before sending them to school, warning that no student would be allowed into school without using a face mask.
He, however, expressed optimism that schools would be reopened in the state in the next two weeks, if the conditions are met.
