Lagos Bans Parties, Social Functions in Public Schools

The Lagos State Government on Tuesday said it would no longer allow social
functions and parties in public schools just as owners of private schools across
the state have been warned to comply with rules and regulations guiding their
operations.
The Deputy Governor of the State, Idiat Adebule, who disclosed this while
briefing the media on the strategic focus of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s
administration on education for 2016, said the governor had directed that
schools should no longer be used for social functions.
Mrs. Adebule said, “The Governor has directed that schools will no longer be
used for social activities any longer. We want to implore members of the public
to report any school that violates this directive and we would ensure that
defaulting schools are sanctioned accordingly.”
Mrs. Adebule, who also oversees the Ministry of Education, said the state
government was putting a searchlight on the standard of education in the
private schools, saying it would no longer be business as usual for such
schools that undermine best practices.

She said as a first step, the government will engage with private school owners
and proprietors to intimate them on the action plan of the present
administration towards improving the standard of education, saying although
government is willing to partner with private schools, they must also be willing
to adhere strictly to the acceptable standard.
“Much as private schools are partners in the sector, we would not fold our
hands and watch the standard flopped. Some schools even operate without
registering with the government. We want to urge such schools to do the right
thing or government will have no choice but to do what it has to do,” she said.
Earlier, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Education, Obafela Bank-Olemoh,
while giving a detailed presentation on the policy thrust of Governor Ambode’s
administration for the education sector, said the state government intends to
construct the biggest digital library.
He said the government was already at the planning stage of the library, while
the actual establishment of the project would commence in the next quarter of
the year.
He said the state government will build 10 new model schools with state of the
art facilities, while two new technical colleges will be built in the course of the
year in areas where such facilities are urgently needed.
On the Ibile Tablets, Mr. Bank-Olemoh said 324,000 tablets would be
distributed to Senior Secondary School students, adding that plans have been
concluded to register all students in both public and private schools in the state
under the Lagos State Student Personal Administration Number (LASPIN)
project to aid proper planning.
On the free meal in schools project, he said the state government was currently
perfecting its framework for the eventual take-off, saying the project was
expected to on the one hand, enhance the learning capacity of the pupils and on
the other, boost the economy of the state.