Residents and leaders of Odokekere community in the Ikorodu Local Council Area of Lagos have faulted the state government for expressing shock over the collapse of a classroom block at Odokekere High School during lessons on Thursday.

They lamented that the government was already aware of the condition of the school but had turned a deaf ear to several appeals. When The Guardian visited the school premises, it was observed that the section that collapsed was a classroom constructed with wood and planks, housing JSS 1 students which gave way onto the fence.

The community had erected three courses of blocks and completed the rest of the classroom with planks to enable students to study in what remains the only government secondary school in the ancient community.

It was also observed that the classrooms housing JSS 2 students are dilapidated, with no doors or windows, while the JSS 3 classrooms are also constructed with planks. The only visible presence of the government in the school are the chairs and tables donated to the JSS 3 classroom and a toilet refurbished through the iCare project in partnership with a member of the House of Representatives representing Ikorodu, Mr Jimi Benson.

According to the community, Odokekere Community High School came into existence through community efforts after repeated calls on the government to establish a secondary school failed.

The Kajie family was reportedly approached to donate land for the school, after which it was transferred to the community. Speaking with The Guardian, the chairman of Itesiwaju Community Development Area (CDA), Odokekere, Kazeem Gbotoba, said there were rumours that between 10 and 20 students died in the collapse, but described the claims as unfounded.

“This land was handed over to the community. We provided sand and gravel and contributed money to start the school. The state government later took over the school and posted workers,” he said.

When asked whether the building had been marked before the collapse, he said: “It was never marked for demolition. We laid three courses of blocks and used planks to complete the building. It collapsed because the plank walls were weak, but we thank God that none of our children was injured. The government has promised to take action and has moved the JSS 1 students to Agodo Primary School.”

Efforts by The Guardian to reach the spokesperson of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), Ademuyiwa Adu, were unsuccessful, as he did not respond to enquiries.

Meanwhile, the Lagos State Government and the Special Committee on Rehabilitation of Public Schools (SCRPS) have expressed regret over the incident.

Information from the SCRPS office revealed that the classroom block had already been marked for demolition to enable the construction of a new classroom building to accommodate the large student population in the school.

The chairman of SCRPS, Hakeem Smith, who led members of the committee on a spot assessment of the incident, confirmed to The Guardian over the phone that work would begin immediately on the construction of an ultra-modern classroom block to accommodate the growing number of students. He promised to provide further updates on the development. (The Guardian)