Many parents have flocked to the Government Special Science Senior Secondary School, North Bank, Uni Agric Road, Makurdi, to remove their children and guarantee their safety in the face of growing insecurity in Benue State.
Remember how Fulani herdsmen slaughtered more than 200 people in Yelellewata, a hamlet 20 minutes’ drive from the school? Because there was insufficient security at the school, parents surrounded the gate and demanded that their children be released so they could go home.
It was learnt that, long before the current academic term began, the school’s administration had written to the Ministry of Education to request protection for the institution, but that nothing had been done.
Following the kidnapping of students at the adjacent Joseph Tarka University Makurdi, JOSTUM, the school sent a reminder to the Ministry, according to a parent who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“The entire community is now deserted after suspected herdsmen attacked the school’s host community just last week, killing several people,” the parent stated.
He stated that because a portion of the perimeter fence behind the school had collapsed, parents could observe cows grazing on the school grounds on the last visiting day.
The students’ safety has become a major issue as a result. According to him, the school administration should act morally and close the building until the local security situation improves.
The upset father said, “Let’s avoid a recurrence of what happened at JOSTUM or the situation involving the Chibok and Dapchi girls here in Benue State.”
