FUBARA ASSURES  NUT OF SECURITY OF SCHOOLS IN RIVERS 

Governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has assured the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) of the security of teachers and pupils across schools in Rivers State.

The assurance came as members of the NUT, Rivers State Wing,  staged a peaceful protest against the recent  attacks on schools and abduction of teachers and pupils in Oyo State and other  parts of the country.

The protesters who  brandished placards with various inscriptions,   were at Government  House, Port Harcourt, in solidarity with their colleagues who were abducted by terrorists  about two weeks ago. It is part of a nationwide action  by the NUT to draw public attention  to the plight of their colleagues who  were kidnapped  from three schools in Oyo State  and are  still in captivity.

Addressing the protesters, Governor Fubara  disclosed   that the state government had been working closely with security agencies to ensure the safety  of schools, teachers and pupils  across Rivers State.

Governor Fubara,  represented by the  Commissioner for Education in Rivers State, Dr. Peters Nwagor, said the  state will continue to  do  all it can to ensure that  incidents of attacks and abductions were prevented from occurring in the state.

He also  appealed to the NUT to exercise a little patience as the Federal Government is  currently working out strategies to ensure that the abducted  teachers and pupils were released within the shorted possible time.

Secretary of the NUT,  Rivers State Wing, Comrade Bassey Asuquo,  who led the protest described the action as a solemn march  of   solidarity with their  fallen colleague whose life was cut short by  the bandits and the  abducted teachers and students still languishing in captivity..

Asuquo lamented that teachers in Nigeria have become endangered species as the average teacher  wakes up every morning to go to school to impart knowledge to their pupils, not knowing whether they will return home alive.

“The school is supposed to be a sanctuary, a place where the future of our nation is nurtured, shaped and prepared for greatness. But what we have witnessed in Oyo State is a brutal attack on a school and the cold blooded beheading of our noble colleague. It is not only a crime against education itself, it is an assault on our collective future as a people.

“Let  it be known that what happened in Oyo State is not an isolated incident. We have seen similar acts of terror in Borno State. We have watched helplessly as schools, the temples of knowledge, are turned into theatres of horror. We refuse to be silenced. We refuse to accept this as the  new normal,” he said.

Asuquo demanded  the  immediate and unconditional release of the  teachers and students still held in captivity and urged   the Federal Government as well as  all State Governments  to take immediate and decisive steps to end the  recurring attacks on schools across Nigeria.

The unionist  also demanded the immediate deployment of adequate security  personnel to all public schools across  Rivers State and the federation  while the government puts in place  a comprehensive national  school safety policy that protects students, teachers and school infrastructure from attacks, abduction and all forms of violence.