The toilet facilities at Iginuwa Primary School in Ode-Itsekiri Community, Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State, have been overgrown with weeds, raising concerns about the condition of sanitation facilities in the school.
Investigations by DAILY POST also revealed that only four teachers are currently working at the school, while pupils are forced to fetch and drink water from a rusty pipe connected to a borehole located near the palace of the Olu of Warri Kingdom, HRM Ogiame Atuwatse III.
A DAILY POST correspondent who visited the ancestral home of the Itsekiri people observed the poor state of some of the facilities at the school.
A teacher at the school, Mrs Weyinmi Areyenka, confirmed that only four teachers are currently working there.
Areyenka explained that the shortage was not necessarily due to the Delta State Government’s failure to post teachers to the school, which is located in a riverine community.
According to her, some teachers posted to the school often refuse to resume because of the challenges associated with travelling to the riverine community.
She said she had previously been involved in an accident on the high sea while travelling to the community to report for work.
“People don’t want to stress themselves or risk their lives. That’s one of the reasons we lack teachers here,” she said.
“I am always with my life jacket, by the grace of God, and that was what saved me when I fell into the river last year. It’s just to keep one safe.”
Areyenka added that the secondary school in the community was also facing a shortage of teachers, describing the situation as difficult for both teachers and pupils.
“We are suffering,” she said, while appealing to Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, to post more teachers who are willing to work in riverine communities to the area.
Weed overtakes Delta primary school, as pupils drink water from rust pipe