ducation is often said to be the foundation of societal progress, but for pupils of Bare Primary School in Billiri, Gombe State, this promise feels like a distant dream. Despite government’s claims of prioritising education with grand projects like two-story school buildings across senatorial districts, Bare Primary School paints a starkly different picture – one of neglect and despair.
Established in 2005 under the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) programme, the school has been left to deteriorate for nearly two decades. Rather than symbolising growth, it stands as a glaring indictment of systemic failure, resembling an abandoned shelter rather than a place of learning.
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A visit to the school unveils a distressing reality. Except for the head teacher’s office, none of the classrooms have doors, windows or proper roofing. Pupils endure lessons sitting on the bare ground, as the school lacks chairs, desks or any semblance of basic infrastructure. Teachers face similar harsh conditions, struggling to deliver quality education.
The school consists of a single block with two classrooms and a borrowed building. The borrowed structure is in equal disrepair, with no doors, windows or sufficient space to accommodate the ever-increasing number of pupils.
Currently, over 400 pupils are enrolled in Bare Primary School, a staggering number given the inadequate facilities. To manage the situation, classes are forced to merge into a single room, where Primary 1A, 1B and 1C pupils are crammed together. This overcrowding turns teaching and learning into an uphill battle.
In an interview, one pupil expressed frustration, saying, “Because we are children of the poor, the government has not fixed our school. If our parents had the means, they would transfer us to better schools.”
This sentiment encapsulates the plight of countless underprivileged children whose future is jeopardised by governmental indifference.
Adding to the dire situation, the local community has remained largely silent, failing to demand better conditions for the school. To make matters worse, the owner of the borrowed building has threatened to reclaim it, potentially leaving the pupils without a place to learn.
Read more: https://dailytrust.com/no-roof-no-chairs-life-in-gombe-school/
