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Paediatric Association of Nigeria (PAN) and the Interfaith Dialogue Forum for Peace (IDFP) have condemned the Federal Government’s decision to reopen schools in the face of rising cases in the country.
Paediatricians said it was obvious that Nigerian healthcare system was ill-equipped to absorb sudden surges in cases of COVID-19 in schools in the country and demanded that schools remain shut until conditions are safe.
PAN’s position was contained in a statement in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, by its president, Prof. Edward Alikor and Secretary, Dr. Petronila Tabansi.
The group said the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Education, should study and learn the situation in other countries that reopened schools before taking it decision on resumption.
“Figures from Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), show exponential rise in COVID-19 incidence and deaths. It would appear that Nigeria has, at this time, not reached its peak incidence of the pandemic. We are still learning about the effect of COVID-19 in the human body, including the long-term effect of the virus in various organs, even in asymptomatic carriers including children. Ghana which reopened its schools three weeks ago has reported 55 new COVID-19 cases in students of Accra Girls Senior High School alone within two weeks of reopening. Consequently, PAN supports the continued closure of Nigerian schools and urges that the schools should remain closed until conditions are safe.
“The minimum criterion for considering the reopening of schools in Nigeria should be a steady and consistent decline in the spread of COVID-19 in most parts of the country. It is then and only then, we believe, that the other criteria as laid down by the Guidelines for Schools and Learning Facilities Reopening after COVID-19 pandemic closures can now be considered. PAN observes, with surprise, the absence of public health physicians, infectious disease experts and other child and adolescent healthcare specialists among the stakeholders listed as having been consulted in arriving at the decision to possibly reopen schools in September, 2020.”
While cautioning the Federal Government not to be in a hurry to reopen schools, the state chairman of IDFP and Deputy National Board of Trustee, Eze Abdulfatah Chimaeze Emetumah, said it would be great danger allowing schools to reopen when the cases were “increasing as the day goes by.”
According to Emetumah, who is also the traditional ruler of Umuofor Kingdom, “it’s a risk reopening schools now. If the death rate is reduced, I would have suggested that the schools should be reopened but whereby they are increasing, it should remain close, we should not subject our children to health hazards.”
Governor Hope Uzodimma, represented by his Senior Special Assistant on Northern affairs and Vulnerable groups, Hajiya Fatimah Hamza, commended IDFP for taking the sensitisation of the COVID-19 pandemic message to the grassroots.
