Various stakeholders in the education sector have stated that the closure of schools in some parts of the country due to attacks by bandits may have grave implications, including students being reluctant to return to school and even their parents not wanting them to do so.

However, they mostly agreed that the closure is not an indication that criminal elements are winning the battle.

This is just as they have also urged the government to be proactive in taking necessary steps that would lead to finding a permanent solution on safety in schools across the country.

The stakeholders are parents under the aegis of the National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria, NAPTAN, the Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, the National Association of Nigerian Students NANS, and university lecturers under the auspices of the Congress of University Academics, CONUA.

They spoke on the heels of the schoolchildren’s abductions in Kebbi and Niger states which forced governments in about seven states to close down schools.

The Federal Government also shut down 41 Unity Schools under its control.

Amnesty International (AI) said about 20, 000 students may have been affected by the closures, saying the development would have negative consequences for education in the country.

States where schools were closed indefinitely include Kwara, Plateau, Niger, Benue, Katsina, Yobe and Kebbi.

At least 10 higher educational institutions in Kebbi and Bauchi states were also shut indefinitely

We can’t say terrorists are winning the battle – NAPTAN

The Chairman, Board of Trustees of NAPTAN, Chief Deolu Ogunbanjo, said the closure of schools in some parts of the country does not mean terrorists are winning the battle.

“I am in support of the closure of schools in areas prone to attacks by bandits and terrorists. It is only students that are alive or that have not been abducted that attend schools. The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has fired the first salvo by shutting down 41 Unity Colleges. Let everybody take precautionary measures. It Is only a few weeks to the Christmas break anyway.

“When the schools are closed, serious work should be done to put in place measures to prevent such ugly incidents happening again and then the schools are reopened early January.

“I would even implore some other states which could fall victims to such incidents to shut down their schools temporarily.

“Some states like Lagos have beefed-up security around schools, that is good, but we must not take needless chances. I don’t believe such a step would mean the terrorists have won, no.”

NUT rues death of member

The National President of the NUT, Comrade Audu Amba, expressed sadness about the death of one of his members in Maga, Kebbi State when a school was attacked and some students taken away.

According to him, the students have been released, but the family of the dead teacher has an irreparable loss to contend with.

“We are in support of the closure of schools in vulnerable areas because those criminal elements have taken schools to be a soft target. They act like guerillas, it is not easy to predict them. And there is this saying that prevention is better than cure. We went to the Kebbi school that was attacked, you will feel for them. Look at the vice principal that was killed in the presence of his family. Now, the girls have been returned, but the man has lost his life. It is his family that now bears the loss.

“We are in support of state governments and the federal government that have shut down schools in vulnerable areas. I don’t think it is correct to say that by doing that the criminals are winning or they have won, no. If you are a parent in one of those schools vulnerable to attack, I know you won’t be able to sleep with your eyes closed.

“Regarding the fear of some students not wanting to go back to school or even parents being afraid to send their children back to school, it is true the trauma will be there, but the government must take the necessary steps to counsel them and let the trauma go away. Time heals.”

We are in a critical situation —NANS

The National Public Relations Officer of NANS, Comrade Adeyemi Samson Ajasa, told Sunday Vanguard that the country is in a critical situation.

“We are in a critical situation and the closure of schools we might not condemn or applaud right now and this is not the first time we will be having red alert on security situation on campuses or in schools.

“We can’t put all the blame on the Federal Government. If the FG puts up a security architecture, the states also ought to support same.

“If we look at those who started the attacks on schools, Boko Haram, who believe that western education is evil, closing schools may make one to be tempted to say the criminals are winning.

“But since the purpose of closing down the schools temporarily is to ensure that necessary apparatus are put in place to ensure the security of students, teachers and others, that is good.

“But if the purpose is not achieved in the long run, then we are not getting it right. We keep our fingers crossed and we are following the situation.”

Safety must precede school bells —CONUA

CONUA, speaking through the National President, Dr Niyi Sunmonu, emphasized the importance of safety in handling the situation.

“The Congress of University Academics (CONUA) acknowledges the deep public anxiety surrounding the temporary shutdown of schools in the face of escalating kidnappings and violent attacks”, Sunmonu said.

“While education remains the heartbeat of national development, CONUA maintains that no learning environment is meaningful if it is not safe.

“In moments such as this, the nation is confronted with a hard but unavoidable truth: preserving life must take priority, even as we urgently demand decisive, time-bound action to restore security and return learners to classrooms with confidence.

“This is indeed a deeply delicate and painful situation, balancing two critical imperatives: the preservation of lives and the securing of the future through education.

“While education is nonnegotiable for national development, it cannot be pursued at the reckless expense of innocent lives.

“When clear and repeated evidence shows that kidnappings, banditry, and violent attacks on schools remain largely unchecked, the first moral and constitutional duty of government is to protect life before anything else. At this moment, it is evident that the state is still struggling to decisively contain these threats. “Asking students and parents to simply ‘return to school’ without first restoring security only deepens fear, trauma, and distrust.

“No parent can reasonably send a child into an environment where safety is uncertain and danger is recurrent.

“What is required now is decisive state action.

“The government must issue a clear, uncompromising marching order to the security agencies, backed with political will, resources, intelligence coordination, and a strict time frame of not more than one year to decisively rid all schools and school corridors of criminal elements. “This must involve dismantling bandit networks, cutting off their funding and collaborators, and eliminating internal betrayals within the system.

“In the short term, school closures may appear like a retreat, and government may seem to be ‘losing.’ “However, this can be a classic case of ‘stooping to conquer.:

“If the pause is used strategically to reset security operations, restore public confidence, and decisively defeat the current wave of criminality, then the long-term gain will be far greater: Safe schools, confident parents, fearless students and eventually, a restored education system.

“Ultimately, education cannot thrive where fear reigns. Security is not an alternative to education; it is its foundation.”

Recall that following attacks on schools in Kebbi and Niger states, the FG shut down 41 Unity Colleges mostly in the northern part of the country, while a number of state governments have also closed down schools in vulnerable areas.

Senate probes Safe School Initiative funding

Meanwhile, the Senate has set up an ad-hoc Committee to investigate all funds allocated to the Safe School Initiative by the Federal Government and its international partners.

The Committeee is saddled with the responsibility of carrying out a holistic probe into the funding and expenditure of the multi- billion naira programme which has seen little success in preventing mass abduction of school children.

The Committeee which is made up of thirteen members, has Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, APC, Abia North as Chairman and Senator Sahabi Yau, APC, Zamfara North as vice Chairman.

Other members are Senators Tony Nwoye, LP, Anambra North; Oluranti idiat, APC, Lagos West; Yemi Adaramodu, APC, Ekiti South; Banigo Ipalibo, PDP, Rivers West; Ede Dafinone, APC, Delta Central and Mustapha Saliu,APC, Kwara Central.

Others are Diket Plang, APC, Plateau Central; Binos Yaroe, PDP, Adamawa South; Kaka Shehu Lawan, APC, Borno Central; Madori Abdulhamid, APC, Jigawa North East and Maidoki Garba, APC, Kebbi South.

The Committee has four weeks to submit its findings.

The Safe Schools Initiative which was a response to the 2014 abduction of over 300 Chibok school girls in Bprno State, is designed to protect educational institutions across all regions of the country.

The programme has raised over $30 million from international sources, while the FG budgeted N15 billion for it this year alone. (Sunday Vanguard)