Thr Periscope Reporter
Following the federal government directives, schools are now reopened with full academic activities today Monday, October 12, 2020.
However, the Periscope investigation can reveal that while some private schools provide facemasks for students, hand sanitizers, soap and clean water. While students are chased out of schools for not wearing facemasks and adhering to other NCDC Protocols in some schools, considered only as isolated case, most schools across the country; both primary and secondary public and private, have not adhered to the NCDC protocols against the spread of Covid-19.
Very few, mostly private schools are however in tune with the NCDC protocols.
Most of the schools, due to the facility constraints, are overcrowded to talk about two metres spacing between the seats.
The directive in some of the states, as part of the condition for the reopening of schools, it was gathered, was that students should have hand sanitizers in their bags as much as it is the responsibility of the parents to provide for their wards, facemasks. This recommendation, even if duly communicated, is however not accommodated as most students go to schools without the hand sanitizers.
There are, also, for the most part, no provision of soaps or detergents and wash hand basins in different locations in the schools.
Similarly, students and even the teachers are, for the most part, not wearing facemasks. Some of those considered fortunate to wear it, either misuse or remove it, due to lack of proper guidance and awareness and seeing that their colleagues have no facemasks with no punishment administered.
Can you tell students in a crowded school, without also effective arrangement and efficient monitoring, to observe physical distancing to you expect compliance?
Students are seen, as in summer time, running around, playing together, ignoring anything or any fear about what would have been a dreaded pandemic.
Some of the schools’ managers, teachers and students spoken to, revealed to the Periscope reporters that flouting the NCDC protocols has become inevitable owing to the poverty.
“The population of students is incommensurable to the facilities in the schools, this constraint has made the unfortunate situation for the overcrowding.
“Apart from the fact that so many families do not believe in any reality associated with the Coronavirus, there’s poverty biting harder on the populace to think about any restrictions to be adhered strictly,” a teacher contributed.
“Our parents told us that it is either the schools’ authority or the government and/or both that are supposed to provide hand sanitizers and facemasks for us,” Students in some public schools said.
Monday is day one of the schools’ reopening. Coronavirus curve may be impressively flattened but not completely eradicated. Therefore, while adopting to the new rather forceful normal, stakeholders must come together and address this dreaded action of going to school without minding NCDC protocols.