Some wives of police officers at Iponri Police Barracks in Lagos on Sunday appealed to Lagos State Police Command to save the only school in their area from closure.
Speaking on the proposed demolition of the school for the construction of
a shopping complex, the women said that closing down the school would send many children to the streets.
“If they close down the school, it means our children will go out of the barrack to school, which is not safe for our children.
“Within the barrack, it is easy to monitor the children,” the spokesperson of the women, Mrs Umoru Abdul, said.
The women urged the police authorities to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of demolishing the school.
“The Lagos police authorities can re-construct the school instead of closure for market stalls. Education is key to success and not market stalls,” Mrs Veronica Sule said.
Mrs Rose Daniel, another concerned resident, said that it was wrong to close down the only school in the barrack, adding that such action would only add more financial burden to affected families.
The proprietor of the school, Mr Cyril Utodio, a retired ASP, said that the school was established in Iponri barracks in 1994 following requests by police officers and their wives.
Utodio said the establishment of the school in the barrack had saved parents from exorbitant fees and the risk associated with children attending school in far away places.
“I am surprised that the Police Officers’ Wives Association wants to demolish the school in order to build a Mammy Market for members. Market is good, but school is better,” Utodio said.
Some teachers in the school also said that the closure would throw them out of job.
According to Miss Vivian David, a teacher, the police should restructure the school instead of total closure and demolition.
A pupil in the school, Chika Igadi, said that his parents would have to look for another school for him outside the barrack.
When contacted, Lagos State Police Commissioner, Mr Yakubu Alkali, said the school would be demolished because it was neither approved by the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) nor registered with the Ministry of Education.
“The school building is an illegal structure in the barrack since it is not approved by the IGP and registered with the Ministry of Education. All illegal structures in the barracks will be demolished,” Alkali added.