Schools To Stay Closed As Reps Review Sept. 22nd Resumption Date

Primary and secondary schools in Nigeria may remain closed beyond the September 22nd resumption date fixed for the 2014/2015 academic session.

Nigeria's Education Minister, Ibrahim Shekarau, had announced a suspension of the resumption of schools as the country battled with the outbreak of the killer Ebola virus disease (EVD).

Shekarau initially shifted the resumption date from September to October 13 but a new date of September 22nd was reached to accommodate concerns raised by private school owners and other stakeholders.

With the EVD threat still yet to be neutralized, the House of Representatives on Tuesday tasked its Committee on Education to review the resumption date for private and public primary/secondary schools in the country.

The Deputy Chairman of Media and Public Affairs of the House, Victor Afam Ogene, said the review is necessary “in the overall interest of the pupils and students, parents and guardians and the general well-being of the entire country”.

“You will recall that upon the outbreak of the dreaded Ebola virus disease in Nigeria, the House Committee on Health rose up to the occasion by interfacing with the health authorities, the result of which is the positive containment efforts and call-off of the strike by doctors in the country,” he said.

Ogene posited that the threat of the Ebola virus is still real, hence the need to put the health of the pupils at the forefront in deciding the resumption date.

What this means is that schools may remain closed longer than the September 22nd date.