Plateau: We inherited decay infrastructure, renovates over 3,000 classrooms-Prof. Sule

From Daniel Dauda, Jos

The executive chairman of Plateau State universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Professor Matthew Nshim Sule said Governor Simon Lalong led administration has inherited decayed facilities in public primary and secondary schools in the state.

Sule explained that when they came on board the Government has renovated over 3,000 public primary and junior secondary schools classrooms as well as decayed physical infrastructures, and the constructions of new ones at 60% rating in 2020.

SUBEB chairman who made the confirmation to Daily Champion on Monday in Jos, said the board inherited decayed infrastructures couple with lack of basic amenities such as; water and toilet system with dilapidated equipment in the primary and secondary schools which makes it difficult for pupils enrollment.

He explained that, “on this note SUBEB equipped most of the schools with the state of the add facilities, which includes; sinking of solar power boreholes, toilets at an average of 40% in which the pupils presently enjoy across the 17 Local Government Areas of the state.

He added that “over 60,000 units of table chairs and other facilities have been distributed to the schools in the 17 LGAs while some are still being delivered to those schools in order of priority.”

He said the problem of reduced enrollment is as a result of rural urban drove, where some schools had to be shutdown following the crisis in some places such as; Barkin Ladi, Bassa, Riyom and Wase LGAs which has put pressure on some classrooms in those areas abandoned.

Professor Sule further disclosed that the total enrollment figure in both primary and junior secondary schools is over 571, 213,000 adding that, when we came on board the poor state of public school infrastructure saw pupils seating on the floor in class room for lack of sufficient seats, while the board also embark on comprehensive repairs as well as provision of white-board in most of the schools.

According to him, “the partnership between UBEC and the state Government is very cordial as the state maintained it’s payment of 50% counterpart funding.

He said:”Our inability to access funds made us to suffered a lot of setbacks, but in 2017 and 2021 we were been able to access within the first and third quarter, Plateau received N4, 858,385,770.68 billion as matching grant. While the January to March quarter we’re expected to pay N379,348, 021.18 million as our need from the counterpart funds with N737, 734,792.34 million stands against us now.”

He also mentioned that the retirement of teachers in the state continuous while recruitment process is on the way “with 17,000 candidates turn up for the aptitude test but 3,400 of them are expected to be recruited to argument the existing ones”, he stated.