The overpopulation in public schools in Ogun State and alleged faulty educational policies have been attributed to the factors fueling violence and attacks on teachers by students in some parts of the state.
The Global President of the Baptist Boys High School Old Boys Association, Prof. Olukayode Oyesiku, disclosed this at a World Press Conference heralding the 100th anniversary of the school in Saje, Abeokuta.
Oyesiku who was flanked by the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, an alumnus of the school, said the school was founded in January 1923 and was due for a Centenary celebration next year.
There had been reports of a series of violent attacks on teachers by the students in many parts of the schools in the state.
Assessing the situation of public schools in the state, Oyesiku lamented that the overpopulation of students in a classroom without sufficient amenities and infrastructure in schools promoted indiscipline among the students.
He said the refusal of the government to hand over missionary schools to their owners, and insistence on funding education solely without the support of other stakeholders and associations like the Parent Teachers Association and the Old Boys Association contributed to the poor standard of education and lack of discipline in the schools.
Oyesiku said, “The government should rethink and review her policy on education. The government tends to do everything but ended up doing nothing.The government’s free education is a sham. Even in our time, when there was free education, it was not absolutely free. Our parents still pay for transportation, bought notebooks, and uniforms.Like in our own case, after the association might have repaired the infrastructure, the government will bring more students to populate the classrooms which cause indiscipline among the students.”
He, however, called on the state government to embark on the construction of the road leading to the school.
Oyesiku equally called for the support of the state government on the construction of the school’s dilapidated fence which according to him had left the school vulnerable to external infiltration.
He noted that the association had been involved in various aspects of the improvement of the school ranging from infrastructural and social interventions to mentoring of the students.
He disclosed that the association had spent a sum of N2 billion in the last 15 years on the renovation and construction of projects in the school.
He said it is planning to raise another sum of N1 billion endowment fund for the school as part of its Centenary celebration of the existence of the school next year.
Speaking on the BBHS’s 100th anniversary, Oyesiku said the one-week meritorious celebration will begin with a road walk around Abeokuta metropolis on Monday, January 16, 2023, and round off with the dedication of the N85 million 600-seater mini stadium on Monday, January 23, 2023.