Dickson: We Can’t Reopen Bayelsa Schools Now

Offers first class graduates automatic jobs Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa

Bayelsa State Governor, Mr Seriake Dickson yesterday explained that the schools in Bayelsa would not be reopened in a hurry because of the need to protect children who are vulnerable to water borne diseases.

Dickson disclosed this during a media chat in Yenagoa yesterday, noting that the state government had started attending to reports of the assessment of the level of the flood by a committee led by the Commissioner for Education, Jonathan Obuebite.

Dickson had on September 29, 2018 shut down all schools in the state due to flooding which displaced thousands of people.

During the interactive session, Dickson said the Ministry of Education “is working towards ensuring that the closure of the schools in the state does not affect the overall performance of students in the forthcoming West African Examination Council.”

He said, “We ordered a forced closure of all schools about a month ago to ensure the safety of the children. Now that the flood is receding, we will do everything to make our schools habitable before announcing the resumption of schools.

“But let me assure you that that will not be too long from now. The State Ministry of Education is monitoring the water level and making daily reports to me. We are not in a hurry to push children who are vulnerable to harm’s way.

“On the issue of the performance of our students in national examinations, I want to assure you that government will encourage all schools to make some adjustments to enable them to make up for lost time.”

He called for collaboration in proffering long term solutions to address the flood issue through the dredging of the major rivers, tributaries, shore protection and construction of sea walls and shelters.

Meanwhile, Dickson has announced automatic employment for all indigenes of Bayelsa State who graduated with first class in their respective areas of studies.

Dickson called on all first class graduates who did not pick the form for the employment process for the 1000 vacancies announced earlier to approach the Civil Service Commission for enrollment into the service.

He explained that the automatic employment of first class graduates would be in addition to the 1000 graduates awaiting oral interview to be conducted by the Civil Service Commission.