Public School Pupils Resort To Open Defecation In Ile-Ife

 

Yusuf Oketola

COMMUNITY Primary School, Ire-Akari, Kosere, along Ifewara road, Ile-Ife, is currently in need of urgent renovation. 

The school which was established in the year 2004 by the administration of former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola is now a shadow of its former self. 

Pupils of the school have resorted to open defecation while teachers use neighbourhood toilets because there is no toilet facility in the school which presently has over 120 pupils.

The school is only existing with two buildings with five classes, one which was built by the administration of Governor Oyinlola at the time of establishment while the second block was donated by a parent. 

Investigation by OSUN DEFENDER revealed that Primary one and two pupils share same class while other four classrooms are being used by primary three to six.

OSUN DEFENDER visited the school on Tuesday and noted that the two blocks of classrooms in the school were in a dilapidated condition.

Findings by this medium revealed that teachers in the school make use of neighborhood toilets while pupils resorted to open defecation or go to their respective homes to answer calls of nature.

Some of the classrooms also lack enough chairs as students were seeing sitting in three instead of one on a seat.

A source in the school who spoke with OSUN DEFENDER under condition of anonymity pleaded with the state government to take swift action in renovating the school.

The source claimed that all teachers in the school resorted to self-help by sourcing for fund to cement the floor of the primary one and two class few weeks back.

She said: “This school was built in 2004 by the administration of former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola with a single block of three classrooms, while the second block with two classrooms was solely built by a parent.

“The conditions of the two buildings are nothing to write home about as we speak. We have to source for fund on our own to fix the floor of primary one and two class few weeks back. The toilet is also not in a good shape. Teachers find alternative from our neighborhood while pupils go home to defecate or find a place in the school environment for open defecation.

“The school is also short of staff. There supposed to be at least one teacher for each of the classrooms but we do not have enough teachers. Also, we have to merge primary one and two together in a single class.

“There is no potable water for use as well. The school has written different letters to the state government on the situation but nothing has been done yet”.