Schools to remain in section during elections, We lost a lot during the Ebola crises and schools are trying to catch up - Education Minister


The Minister of Education, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau, on Monday directed that all public and private primary and secondary schools as well as tertiary institutions remain in session during the 2015 general elections.

Shekarau gave the directive while briefing newsmen after a meeting with Commissioners of Education from the 36 states of the federation in Abuja.
He said that there were no compelling reasons to close schools as efforts were being made to provide adequate security during the elections.

``At the end of our deliberations with commissioners from 36 states of the federation and the FCT and the management of NUC, NBTE and NCCE, we resolved as follows.
``That all schools and institutions should remain in session while elections go on; most of our schools are half-way into the second term of the school calendar; we lost a lot during the ebola crisis and most schools are trying to catch up.
``All schools that have not gone on mid-term break should put it on hold; those already on mid-term break should resume.
``In schools where we have polling stations, we have decided to ask state governments and Ministries of Education to ensure safety of students.’’

Shekarau urged parents not to work on rumours and expressed optimism that the elections would be conducted without violence or threat to life.