Osun Mega Schools: Safety Of Our Students, Teachers Top Priority – SSG
Osun State government has reiterated its determination to keep its citizens and residents safe irrespective of mischief makers’ insinuations to the contrary.
Secretary to the State Government, Prince Wole Oyebamiji, debunked claims that the administration of Adegboyega Oyetola is out to witch-hunt its predecessor with the decision to carry out integrity tests on the state-owned model schools.
The ongoing integrity test has raised dust from loyalists of former governor Aregbesola who are insinuating that the exercise was intended to rubbish the project of the immediate past administration.
However, Oyebamiji said the Governor will continue to do what is right for his people unlike the desperate elements trying to score cheap political points at the expense of human lives adding that safety of students, teachers and all workers in the affected schools is the reason for the exercise.
In a statement made available to journalists in Osogbo, Oyebamiji explained that the origin of the structural challenges in a few of the model schools predated the Oyetola administration.
According to him, a few months after the swearing-in of Oyetola as the governor of the state, some of the facility managers appointed by the previous administration complained to the new administration about the shocking, accelerated deterioration and alarming disintegration of some of the schools under them.
Based on this complaint he said, the new administration in early 2019 requested one of the facility managers, Engr (Mrs) C. B Olajide, who was the one in charge of maintenance of the mega schools and also a Senior Special Assistant to former Governor Rauf Aregbesola to carry out a comprehensive assessment of the physical conditions of the 10 functional Mega schools and come up with repair and rehabilitation needs.
He noted that the consultant came up with a disturbing report containing a wide range of defects and glaring material failures in schools commissioned between 2016 and 2018.
He noted that a private and reputable independent Geo-technics laboratory outside the state was later engaged by the committee of professional bodies to assist them in the test and the result of the Non-Destructive Tests showed that some structural facilities of some of the buildings had issues which necessitated another rounds of structural test which result is being awaited.