House of Representatives member, Bamidele Salam (Ede North/Ede South/Egbedore/Ejigbo Federal Constituency), has said that many Nigerian leaders tend to overlook rising insecurity because their children attend private schools or study abroad, unlike those of ordinary citizens in public schools.
Speaking during plenary on Wednesday (in a viral video), he called for urgent protection of schools across the country and cited a Yoruba proverb to illustrate inequality in response to violence:
“There is a saying among the Yoruba people that if a lion comes into a village and k+lls the children of the poor, there may be no noise… but when the day the lion comes into the village and kills a child of the king, the whole city is turned into a graveyard.”
He added that many leaders are detached from public school realities: “For reasons we all know most of the children of those of us who are in leadership position today attend private schools. Some of them outside of the Republic of Nigeria. But the children of the poor attend public schools and we cannot afford to close our eyes…”
Salam proposed a dedicated security structure for schools: “Part of the resolution should be the need to create a special force specifically designed for the school system.”
He noted that Nigeria once had a school security framework under the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, but said it was poorly funded: “It was never funded for the period of its existence.”
He stressed urgency, arguing that if government can secure officials, it can protect schools: “If we can protect the thousands of public office holders in Nigeria, we can protect the children of the poor.”
Reacting to recent insecurity in Oyo State, he urged proactive government action: “The government needs to be more proactive and provide comfort to the victims of these attacks.”
0 Comments
DISCLAIMER
The views and opinions expressed on this platform as comments were freely made by each person under his or her own volition or responsibility and were neither suggested nor dictated by the owners of News PLATFORM or any of their contracted staff. So we take no liability whatsoever for such comments.
Please take note!