*Says WAEC can’t determine resumption date

Just In: FG makes u-turn on school resumption

The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, on Wednesday, disclosed that sequel to the rising cases of Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the country, Nigerian schools will not reopen any time soon.

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The Minister also insisted that the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) cannot determine the resumption date of schools for Nigeria

In contrary to the earlier report on the resumption of schools, Adamu stated that final year students preparing for the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE) will not be allowed to return to school.

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Adamu disclosed this to newsmen at the end of the 7th virtual Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

READ ALSO: Breaking: Schools will resume August 3 in Lagos – Sanwo-Olu

Adamu stated that the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) cannot determine the resumption date of schools for Nigeria.

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He said he would prefer that Nigerian students lose an academic year than to expose them to dangers.

He appealed to States that have announced the resumption of schools in their states to reconsider their position so as not to jeopardize the lives of the students.

He added that it is not yet safe to reopen schools now.

The Minister said he would prefer that Nigerian students lose an academic year than to expose them to dangers.

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Adamu said, “I don’t know whether you journalists are misquoting the Minister of State for Education or maybe quoting what WAEC said and made it into a story.

“Schools under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Education will not be opened on August 4 or anytime soon.

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“Our schools will only open when we believe it’s safe for our children and that is when the situation is right, not when the incidence of the infection is going up in the nation. I just want to make it clear.

“We will not open soon for examination or for any reason, unless it is safe for our children, even WAEC. WAEC will not determine for us what we do. Schools will remain closed.

“Yesterday (Tuesday), we called on stakeholders who will tell us the situation and the way it should be done for it to be safe. While the meeting was going on, WAEC announced that they are starting examinations. Let’s see who they are going to start with.

READ ALSO: Covid-19: Primary 6, JSS3 and SS3 students to resume school – FG

“I will also like to use this position to ask those states that have already announced (reopening), I appeal to them, I think it is not safe. I feel responsible for all children, not just those who are in federal government-controlled schools. Please let’s save our children from this.

“One infected child is enough to infect a whole class. When they close from class they go into the dormitory, this is not the right time to open schools. I appeal to the states that have already announced to reconsider it.”

When asked if Nigeria will be the only country to miss out of the WAEC examinations, he said “me as Minister of Education, if I’m given the chance, I don’t mind Nigeria losing a whole school year than exposing our children to danger. WAEC is a parastatal of the Ministry of Education, they cannot determine for the government what it does.”

The Minister also said that FEC approved an agreement between the Kaduna Polytechnic (KADPOLY) and an investor to renovate 18 blocks of student hostels.

“The contract which is a 15-year concession at the cost of N744,264 million, is under a Renovate Operate, Maintain and Transfer (ROMT) arrangement.

“It will take one year to construct the hostels, after which the contractor will run it for 15 years within which they will recover what they have sunk into the project.

“There are 18 blocks of hostels and each room in a block will house four students. The total number of students to be housed will be 4,032.”

Completion of Projects

The Minister of Works and Housing, Babtunde Fashola who was also part of the meeting said, “The Ministry of Works and Housing presented two memoranda. The first one was to aid the completion of the Enugu-Lokponta section of the Enugu- Port Harcourt highway, it was the augmentation of an existing contract by N25 billion, the council approved that augmentation.

“The second memoranda was the award of three different roads. The first is Dikwa-Marte-Mungunu road for N60. 273 billion and the Numan road linking Borno and Adamawa for N15.527 billion and the third is for Gombi-Biu linking Adamawa and Borno also for N7.643 billion.”

The Minister said that the contractor handling the Abuja-Akwanga-Keffi road has not left site although activities may not be seen as busy as before because of the prevailing circumstances in the country.

He said,” many of the contractors have reduced the workers on site because of the guidelines we have issued as a country in terms of social distancing. Only 11 contractors executing 53 projects in 20 cities were allowed to resume work in the first phase of ease of the lockdown. So we are bound by government policy.”

Changing Nigeria’s foreign policy direction

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama said that the Ministry presented its scorecard to the council and the need to changing the foreign policy direction of the country.

He said, ” We need to have all Nigerian meeting of stakeholders to look at our foreign policy and to review our foreign policy and to see in which direction it should be going. So we have started in that process of organizing this and we have some seminars that we are putting in place as a mechanism for doing that.

“Then another objective of Mr. President is lifting a hundred million Nigerians out of poverty over the next ten years. A number of proactive projects we have executed have also sought to contribute to that.”

More to come…

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