‘For Safety, Proximity Should Be Considered In Siting Schools’
Akin Olayemi
Traditional ruler of Otumara community in Lagos Mainland Local Government of Lagos state has reiterated his call for the construction of blocks of Senior Secondary School in the district.
He made the call following the occurrence of an accident involving an articulated truck which lost control and rammed into some students at the Grammar School bus stop, Ojodu area of Lagos state leaving three students dead while 18 others are left severely injured.
Describing the accident as tragic and avoidable, Kalejaiye said students need not walk a long distance to acquire secondary education, observing that doing so exposes them to risk and accident as witnessed in the state on Tuesday.
“The Lagos State government and its Ministry of Education must consider proximity in the siting of schools because acquiring formal education should come with ease and not at the expense of the lives of the pupils.
Although every step of human being has been predestined, but the truck ramming into pedestrians which in this case are students returning from school wouldn’t have happened if the students didn’t have to journey through major highways and bridges to and from respective schools.
For ease of learning and for the mental and physical health of the pupils, schools ought to be a short distance walk to and from the residence of the students.
A situation whereby a student resident in a local government and would have to trek a long distance on busy roads and congested traffic coupled with the reckless driving of some drivers as exist in Lagos state to another local government for his/her secondary education should not be encouraged.
Apart from exposing our children to road accident, it also exposes them to cultism and other vices. But if students could be restricted to his/her district of residence for learning, cases of road accidents and other related danger will be a thing of the past.”
From the foregoing, the traditional ruler appeal to Governor Babajide Sanwo-olu to accede to the demand for senior secondary school of residents in the Lagos Mainland Local Government area of the state for the sake of the future of the leaders of tomorrow.
He said, “Since the administration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Lagos state has witnessed huge transformation. I also recognise the enormity of responsibilities on the shoulder of our amiable governor but of utmost importance is the construction of Senior Secondary School for us in the Lagos Mainland Local Government to avoid a repeat of the Ojodu accident.
Our children are suffering. They are exposed to hazard on the road. On a daily basis, these student in their numbers walk the bridges from Surulere to Jibowu and back to Ebute Metta in Lagos state. Many of these children are playful and at most time, they loose guard while on the road. In the process of this, anything could happen.
But if they don’t have to journey that far for their secondary education, they can easily be monitored because they are in their neighbourhood.
So, I am appealing to the Lagos State government and the ministry of education to do the needful and implement the approval of the construction of the Senior Secondary School which has been granted by the governor for the sake of the safety of our children.”
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