A story about Babile D/A Primary School in the Lawra District of the Upper West Region, which is on page 11 of our today’s edition, is a must-read for certain relevant prominent personalities who have the authority to act in state matters.
They include President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the Minister of Education, Director-General of the Ghana Education Service, the Upper West Regional Minister, the Upper West Regional Director of Education, the Director of the Lawra District Education Directorate, the Lawra District Chief Executive and the Member of Parliament for Lawra.
The story is about the dilapidated nature of the Babile D/A Primary School block and its lack of school furniture for which some pupils have dropped out of the school while some parents are contemplating withdrawing their children from it to join them on the farm
In an era of a political administration touted to have done the best so far in improving education in the country, the least everyone would expect is a school under tree waiting to be replaced with the necessary facilities and not such case as that of the Babile D/A Primary School, where the pupils have been forced to lie on their stomachs on the bare floor of dilapidated classrooms during lessons.
It sounds like a fairy tale because this country has advanced enough to not have such a situation as a current occurrence in its education sector, as it portends evil for the honing of the academic potential of children in the Babile community.
Even though farming is a noble profession, it is sad to hear that most parents in the area are compelled to send their children to the farm to assist them instead of allowing them to go to school struggle to learn. On top of that, the children make themselves dirty as they have to lie on dirty floor and give their parents the trouble of washing their uniforms on daily basis.
The Ghanaian Times is worried about the claim by the Assembly Member for the Babile Electoral Area, Zola Dabuo, that all efforts made to get the authorities to work on the dilapidated building and also help the school with furniture had proven futile.
This is why this editorial is calling the attention of certain personalities to the plight of the pupils and teachers of Babile D/A Primary School.
We know the President of the country personally would not know every problem on the ground but he has lieutenants who can solve certain problems and only call his attention to those beyond them.
We agree that the President should not be bothered with the problems of one little school somewhere in the country because there are officers in charge of those problems.
However, it appears some people are refusing to discharge their duties if the Assembly member’s claim is anything to go by.
Is it a case of some public officials neglecting their duties to sabotage the government’s efforts in improving education by giving its opponents cause to discredit it or this is another case of one of the evils of bureaucracy?
The Ghanaian Times joins all appeals to get Babile D/A Primary a suitable classroom block to facilitate teaching and learning and boost enrolment in the school.
Babile D/A Primary School teachers and pupils need help and need it urgently.