Published By Olanrewaju Adesanya
Hon. Sanni Okanlawon who chairs the Lagos House of Assembly committee on Education, has urged public school heads with dilapidated structures to appropriately notify the government for prompt attention, stating that ensuring a conducive environment for learning is a collective responsibility.
The lawmaker who represents Kosofe constituency 1 at the State Assembly expressed his displeasure over a particular school building in dysfunctional state, describing it as an eye-sore.
He thereafter mandated the state’s School Rehabilitation Committee to immediately swing into action to renovate it , while he charged school managers to inform appropriate authorities when such is sighted anywhere across the state for required attention.
He said: “I am wondering why a school like this will exist in my constituency and I am not aware of it. I want to blame the head teacher for not escalating the issue to us.
“We have over 1106 primary schools in Lagos State and it is the duty of the school management to inform us so appropriate action can be taken on it.
“This school is an eye-sore and we will do something about it. I will definitely inform the Chairman, Schools Rehabilitation to have a look at the dilapidated schools and fixed them immediately because we cannot continue this way.
Okanlawon asserts the importance of unhindered flow of information for speedy remedy, in continuation of his scheduled intervention visits to public primary schools in his constituency.
The lawmaker who donated a well-equipped ICT centre to primary school pupils at Emmanuel Nursery and Primary School, Ojota, Lagos on Wednesday, also rehabilitated a borehole at Idi-Aba, Ojota in memory of the late Senator Bayo Osinowo.
Other schools visited were Ogudu Nursery and Primary School and Anglican Nursery and Primary School, Ogudu, where he distributed educational materials to pupils.
He commended teachers generally for impacting knowledge on the children as the country celebrated the World Teachers Day on Tuesday.
The lawmaker said that Nigerians must continue to commend the teachers who are saddled with the responsibility of modeling their children from the cradle.
He said that the idea of inaugurating the ICT centre in Emmanuel Nursery and Primary School, Ojota, Lagos was to bake the children right from the cradle on computer knowledge.
“The idea of this ICT center we are inaugurating today is that we want to start baking our children right from the cradle for creativity and innovations in computer.
“This is because for our children to measure up with the 21st century, every child must be computer literate and that was why I constructed an ICT centre in one of the schools in Kosofe Constituency 1,” he said.
Okanlawon said that the masses must not be left out and urged other philanthropists to contribute their quota to the development of the people.
Also speaking, the Executive Chairman of Kosofe Local Government Area, Hon. Moyosore Ogunlewe commended the lawmaker for constructing ICT centre in the primary school.
Ogunlewe said: “I must say this is a beautiful idea, ICT is what all countries of the world are doing now.
“It is a good idea for him to have put this together in making sure that the ICT centre is in a primary school of this magnitude.
“So I am happy that it is in my local government. So, I want to urge the beneficiaries to use it appropriately, and do the needful.”
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Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Education, Mrs. Adetola Salau said that digital awareness was one of the most important knowledge in the 21st century.
She said: “Digital awareness is one of the most important things in the 21st century, and that informed my coming here today. The knowledge of computer is at the heart of development.
“This is something we want to do more and more. So I am looking on for more collaboration with the lawmaker and other areas in the state for our children to advance digitally.
“It is the only way these children can survive and be successful to contribute to the growth of the society in the 21st century.”
Also, Tunde Temionu, a political leader in Kosofe, said that the project would be a big relief to parents.
Temionu urged the pupils to face their studies and be of good conduct.