Chibuike Amaechi’s alma mater students agonise writing exams on bare floor
By Amos Odhe, Bayelsa
Students of Gbaranowei Grammar School, Okolobiri near Yenagoa have expressed their agony over writing their promotion examinations while sitting on the bare floor.
Gbaranowei Grammar School was established in 1973 as a boarding school for both boys and girls and has produced eminent students including Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi and Bayelsa State Commissioner for Information, Orientation and Strategy, Ayibaina Duba among others.
However, the condition of the school has deteriorated with two dilapidated classroom blocks without ceilings, seats, doors and windows, and students have to sit on the bare floor to write their promotion examinations.
When correspondents visited the school on Monday, they saw that the walkway was bad and over 100 students writing examination in one of the classrooms with over 20 students sitting on the bare floor.
It was revealed that the school has had the challenge of lack of seats since most of them were destroyed during the 2012 flood and the few seats were due to the effort of parents under the Parents Teachers Association (PTA).
In one of the classrooms, SSS2B, there were just 11 seats that could contain three students each for 79 science students and 35 arts students in the which has total student population of over 2,000.
The staff room was no better with not more than eight tables and chairs while majority of the teachers having to stand due to the same challenge of lack of school fur I thee.
Reacting to the development, the Commissioner for Information, Orientation and Strategy, Ayibaina Duba said the government was aware of the situation and something was being done to address the situation.
Duba disclosed that the Ministry of Education had carried out a NEEDS assessment to determine the particular challenges facing each school in the state.
He said the challenges including school furniture, lack of teachers and the state of buildings disclosing the state government had purchased some seats and expressed shock that Gbaranowei Grammar School did not get any.
While Old students associations of prominent schools such as Barewa College, Zaria, Government College, Ughelli, Ekakpame Grammar school, Ekakpamre, CKC, Onithsa , among others are always in touch with the needs of the schools that made them what they are today, the case of Gbaranowei Grammar school, Okolobiri is a pathetic story.
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