Naija News
Governments of the six oil-bearing states of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, and Rivers, have come under severe criticism for allegedly failing to tackle the menace of out-of-school children in the geopolitical zone.
Gender rights activist, Dorathy Ene Eyo, on Saturday, told Naija News that many children in the oil and gas region are currently growing up the hard way.
According to her, ‘’in Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Rivers and other states in the larger Niger Delta area, there are tens of thousands of children living in squalor and poverty. They are robbed of childish innocence, denied the basic necessities of life and left to fend for themselves because their parents are poor and cannot afford to cater for them.’’
She said in the coastal areas, many children have stopped going to school because either their uniforms are torn or their parents cannot afford the levy being paid ‘’in spite of the fact that education is supposed to be free for them.
‘’In some other cases, teachers asked pupils to stay back at home until they get new uniforms. While waiting to get new ones, they devote a major part of their day to fishing or selling at the market in the evenings.
‘’Sadly, parents of the affected children tend to accept their fate. They seem unperturbed that their children are not in school and will never be able to compete with their counterparts in the city. Some of the mothers of these children in the rural areas have told us that they would have loved to see their wards and other children in school but cannot afford to pay the fees.
‘’They claim that It is not their fault that their children do not go to school because they don’t have money to pay the fees.’’
Ms. Eyo says this is happening because measures adopted by the authorities to tackle poverty ‘’do not seem to be very effective in the rural areas. We also feel that governors of the oil states lack the will to make education very functional and effective at the primary school level.
‘’Primary school buildings in rural areas, and even in some in the urban areas are nothing to write home about. What is manifesting today at the tertiary level which ASUU is fighting for is as a result of the decay at the grassroots.
‘’We are of the view that communities should seriously interrogate those seeking their support for elective offices in terms of their plans for education, health, and water supply. 2023 should not be business as usual if our children are to be rescued from turning into social deviants.’’
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, speaking at the opening of GOTNI leadership centre in Abuja on Thursday expressed concern about the menace of out-of-school children in Nigeria.
Head of United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) office in Kano, Rahama Farah, on Wednesday said more than 18.5 million children in the country do not have access to quality education.
