Ogun teachers give Abiodun conditions for school reopening

Public school teachers in Ogun state on Tuesday listed conditions Governor Dapo Abiodun must first
meet before reopening schools in the state.

Putting their safety and pupils’ first, the teachers demanded provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), infrared thermometers, hand sanitizers, among other safety items in schools before reopening.

The state chairman of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Comrade Titilope Adebanjo, who unveiled the conditions during an interaction with reporters at the union’s Secretariat in Abeokuta, the state capital, insisted they must be evidentially met before schools can reopen in the state.

Adebanjo cited other conditions given by the NUT as disinfection of school premises, provision of running water, alcohol based sanitisers, training of teachers on how to use the thermometers and standby health workers within a kilometer radius of each public school in the state.

Governor Dapo Abiodun had last Friday declared that schools and worship centres in the state should remain shut for another 14 days following the increasing COVID – 19 infection rate and seeming laying down of guards by residents.

The NUT chairman said that the teachers’ position on what should be done first before school reopening, were contained in a position paper presented to the government on Monday.

Adebanjo said: “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 portable 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.”

He, however advised 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 expressed the optimism that schools would be reopened in the state before the next two week if the conditions are met.