School Of Nursing Students Protest Poor Learning Environment

Students of the Rivers State School of Nursing, Rumueme, Port Harcourt, yesterday protested over poor facilities and other anomalies going on in the school.

The students numbering over 100 stormed the premises of the Rivers State Newspaper Corporation, Port Harcourt yesterday morning demanding that the state government should pay attention to the indiscriminate admission and dismissal of students currently going on in the school.

Speaking through their spokesman, Mr Enyindah Frank Daniel, the students said, “we are here to tell the state government that the students of the School of Nursing are suffering. The environment under which we study is very unconducive. There is no toilet system, no water, no security, no school bus, no electricity, we read with lanterns, no facility at all”.

The students alleged that every session, the school authorities admit over 100 students, collect school fees and other monies from them, only to take only 50 students and lay off the rest.

According to them, the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria had approved that the school could admit 100 students but the approval was yet to be signed by the state House of Assembly, making it impossible for the approved number of students to be admitted.

The students further said that they had on several occasions met with the school authorities over the issues to seek the assistance of the Ministry of Health, but all efforts yielded no positive results.

“The ministry promised to reply us through our Principal but we have not heard from them since then”, said Daniel.

The students who carried placards with inscriptions like, “We came to school healthy, you make us  sick”, “We need water, light, Students Union Government, We are suffering while your children are outside the country”, regretted that the only school of nursing in the state was left in a deplorable condition.

They demanded for a good toilet system, electricity, school buses, water and other facilities be provided for them so as to make the school more attractive and enjoyable.

However, a source close to the school authorities hinted that contrary to the students’ allegations, fresh students were usually placed on probation for six months after which they were examined and those who were not successful were shown the way out.

All efforts made by  The Tide to reach the Commissioner for Health, Dr Sampson Parker to get his comments on the issue proved abortive as he would neither pick his calls nor reply to text messages.

Calista Ezeaku