Navy Guarantees Safety of Students from Kidnappers

Chiemelie Ezeobi

The Nigerian Navy (NN), saturday said all the pupils and students in the service’s owned school establishments are guaranteed maximum safety from the clutches of any kidnap attempt.

The Flag Officer Commanding, Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Ferguson Bobai, made this disclosure during the inauguration of the newly rehabilitated five blocks of five classrooms each at the NN Primary School (NNPS), Okokomaiko, Lagos State.

Given the increasing spate of kidnapping of school students in Lagos, the navy boss said such cannot be obtainable in the schools run by the navy as adequate measures are in place to counter any such attack.

According to him, the security architecture of each navy school, either secondary or primary, was such that they are located inside barracks.

For those schools which were established outside military barracks, he said the safety of the students are still guaranteed given the massive deployment of security personnel to guard them.

He said, “First of all, our primary schools are located inside barracks, so the singular fact that they are in the barracks to start with some level of security has been guaranteed. Besides the security architecture to secure our barracks, even the schools within such barracks still have their own security architecture.

“But for other schools that are outside barracks, there are deployments we also do to ensure that they provide security for the schools. Again, besides those who are primarily engaged in school’s administration and teaching, we have officers and ratings who are particularly deployed for security.”

On the assessment of the inaugurated projects he said, “It is a transformation from when I assumed command in April 2016. The school was dilapidated when I paid my maiden visit to the school but today, all the blocks have been touched except two, which would soon undergo rehabilitation too.

“Before, it was an eyesore. It looked like a scrap yard and if children are trained in such environment, they will end up being scraps too. We have to prepare our children to be leaders of tomorrow by ensuring they have a conducive environment for learning.”
Earlier on, the school’s Head Teacher, Lieutenant Joan Okam-Dimgba, in her address said the school was established on July 2, 1988 as an annex of NN Primary School, Ojo.

She said: “It was established as a welfare school to cater for the basic educational needs of the children/wards of officers and ratings. The school gained autonomy in 1996 and has since performed excellently well in academics and extra curricula activities. Its existence has been of tremendous benefit to civilians and serving personnel.

“The school gives quality education to its pupils though its team of experienced teaching and non-teaching staff. It makes the best use of facilities and resourced at its disposal to cater for educational needs of the pupils. However, there is need to improve on the facilities in the school so as to provide a conducive teaching and learning environment.”