Parents, teachers protest, ask Kwara govt to reopen schools

Parents, proprietors and teachers of private schools on Friday urged the Kwara state government to reopen schools that were shut down as part of efforts to curtail further spread of COVID-19.

The stakeholders made the call during a peaceful protest they had in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital.

The protesters, numbering more than 50, had gathered at the state secretariat of the National Association of Propietors of Private Schools with placards bearing various inscriptions aimed at drawing the attention of the governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, to the plight of the students, teachers and school owners to the biting effect of the continuous closure of schools.

The inscriptions on some of the placards they carried read: “Mr. President, tell governor to reopen our schools now!”; “Our teachers are suffering, please open up our school”; “Kwara private school parents calls for school reopening”; “If Lagos can reopen school why not Kwara?” among several others.

One of the parents who spoke with our correspondent on anonymity said schools had been closed for too long.

She insisted that it was wrong for political campaigns to be allowed while schools remained closed, adding that the same guidelines put in place for the reopening of markets and worship centres should be adopted for schools as well.

Addressing the protesters, the state president of the association, Dr. R.A. Oyawole, appreciated the peaceful manner in which the protest was conducted and saluted the teachers for staying strong during lockdown.

He said their message would be delivered to the Governor through the state Commissioner for Education.

He gave the commissioner’s assurance that the radio and television tutorials would not replace the normal school activities.