By: Chidalu Glory
Abstract: Nwafor Orizu College of Education, a tertiary institution that houses thousands of students, lacks perimeter fencing despite over ten years of the project appearing in the state budget.
The students and staff of the Nwafor Orizu College of Education Nsugbe (NOCEN) grapple with dire security challenges largely because the school lacks perimeter fencing.
The school, a tertiary institution that houses thousands of students, lacks perimeter fencing despite the project appearing in the state budget for over ten years.
The school is unguarded and open to intruders as only a group of trees marks the boundary between the school and the host community. Although it has three gates, none of these fences and gates connect, as they only act ceremonially. Apart from the section that faces the main road, others do not have any form of fencing or boundary demarcation. This constitutes a security threat to students, at a time when the kidnapping of innocent, vulnerable students is frequently perpetuated by terrorists and bandits.
A section of the front gate
NOCEN is owned and managed by the Anambra State government and gets allocations for capital projects annually. The school appears in the state budget for capital projects annually.
One of such projects is the construction of the school’s perimeter fencing. It has appeared in multiple budgets in the last decade, and over N900 million has been budgeted and approved, yet none of the allocations have been executed.
A section of the fence facing the gate
A look around the campus shows the poor state of the institution due to government neglect. Students and staff also lament the poor security, dilapidated and overcrowded classrooms, lack of manpower, dilapidated hostels, scarcity of water, and poor road network in the school.
Reactions from students
Many students, who spoke to this reporter, expressed their frustrations overthe condition of the school.
Ikeaguna Eucharia, a 400-level student of English Education, lamented the insecurity and risk she faces when learning in a school environment without perimeter fencing. Eucharia lives in one of the school’s 19 student hostels.
“We face a lot of things here, especially at night. Once it’s 7pm, you cannot leave your hostel room, not even to walk around the school premises or even to the reading room. It’s very bad that even inside the reading room, they still rob them. They normally collect their phones. The worst part is that they rape students around the campus once it’s 7 pm,” she said.
“Another thing that contributes to this rape and stealing around the school is the lack of streetlights. We do not have at least one streetlight in the school, so once it’s 7 p.m., everywhere becomes dark and dangerous.
“The school is open to the villagers and strangers and also doesn’t have streetlights; it is obviously going to be risky at night,” she told UDEME.
Jessica Akwugo, another student in her penultimate year studying Chemistry, narrated how thieves stole their accessories and ”personal property” during holidays, including clothes and kitchen utensils.
“During holidays, it’s usually worse. Those villagers break into our hostels to steal. They always take bedding and our belongings. They have finished stealing the bunks in this school,” she said.
Set of trees that act as the back gate
She also narrated how her friend’s two phones were stolen within two months.
Chiamanda Ezeobi is more bothered about the water scarcity in the school and ”how they have to drag the available water with the villagers and outsiders”.
“We have 19 hostels in this school, and yet it is one tap water that works in the school, and it runs occasionally. Yet, whenever the water is rushing, we will be dragging it with the outsiders. They will carry the big containers and be dragging water with students,” she said.
Pathway through the villagers pass through at the back of the school
Another student, Jessica Ezeobi, lamented that “the school is more concerned about making the male hostels habitable and more secure than the ladies’ hostels.”
“The male hostels are renovated and more secure than the female hostels. They hardly rob them. The school authorities only care about them,” she complained.
Meanwhile, the males seem unaware of what is happening in the school. Paschal Isika, also a student who lives on the campus, told UDEME that the males have a different reality.
“I have not witnessed any break-in or robbery in the school. The girls might have a different reality, but we the guys do not experience that. I think the reason would be because we organize ourselves and form our own security. You cannot just enter a male hostel like that to steal,” he said.
Response From Security Department
One of the security personnel in charge of safeguarding the school, Somadina Okoli, said that the lack of adequate manpower and resources contributes to the high level of insecurity in the school.
“I will not say we have perimeter fencing in this school. We just have a front gate; every other part of the school area is not fenced.”
He recalled how he was beaten while on duty.
“We are also suffering from lack of manpower. If we had enough manpower, some of these stories would not be coming. In the entire school, we only have ten security personnel. You can be at your duty point, and the thieves will even beat you up too. Recently, I was beaten in front of the gate. They overpowered me and battered my body, and nothing was done about it. If we were enough, things like this would not be occurring. How can one person man a gate while also pursuing robbers and searching cars?” he questioned.
“Even the staffrooms are not safe. Most of the properties have been stolen. The students suffer more, especially the females, and we cannot help them. The whole of 19 hostels, it’s only three security personnel that guard it (them) at night. There is no way you can guard 19 hostels well. If you are in this hostel, they will be robbing the other one,” he said.
He also complained about ”the movements and new faces they encounter daily”.
“Around 2 am, you will hear motorcycle sounds around the school. You will be wondering where they came in from and where they were heading. The lack of perimeter fencing is a big challenge to us. Every day, you see new faces, and you cannot keep count of people entering or leaving the school or even their entrance or exit point. In this kind of situation, when they rob, how do you want to catch them?” he asked.
The school security also lacks any form of mobility as the only car they had, has been damaged for a long time.
“We do not have security cars or even bicycles. Security that lacks mobility—how can it operate? If there is a need for emergency or backup before you trek to the location, it is already late. Look at our office; we do not even have basic security gadgets. Nothing is working in this school,” he lamented.
The abandoned security vehicle
School official responds
The reporter tried unsuccessfully to reach the rector. But Chioma Azubuike, the acting chief librarian, who spoke on behalf of the school shared the same remarks. She described the situation as ”a big, challenging issue”.
“We are facing serious challenges, especially the insecurity and robberies in the school. They keep stealing; even our e-library and staffrooms are not safe,” she told UDEME.
“They stole the cables that connect us (staffrooms) to the e-library, where we have computers for JAMB and school exams. These things are normally done in the night around 2 a.m. Our security personnel cannot be everywhere, and they are few in number,” she said.
“We seriously need the whole school to be fenced so we will be sure of the safety of our properties,” she added.
She narrated how they had to install iron window protectors to prevent thieves from breaking into offices. She also lamented that female students face a lot of harassment due to the issue.
“There are plenty of movements around the school, especially in the female hostels. They always complain about the type of people they see around at midnight. We have had issues of sexual harassment, but you know people won’t easily open up about issues of rape or harassment,” Dr Chioma said.
She also explained how they go the extra mile to verify students’ identities when they claim to be school students.
“We often see new faces and keep interrogating to know whether they are students. Sometimes you might have to call the HOD to confirm their identity.”
TetFund beams hope
However, Dr Chioma revealed that the construction of perimeter fencing for the school would commence soon as ”TetFund has already awarded the project”.
“I thank God the perimeter fencing has been approved and work will start soon. I believe once the school is fenced, things will be better. At least the movement will reduce, and we can keep track of what is going on in the school.”
Efforts to get official reactions
UDEME contacted the commissioner of education, Prof. Ngozi Chuma-Umeh, regarding its findings in the school but was denied access.
This reporter contacted the commissioner via emails and follow-up emails, but she has not responded. The commissioner was contacted through her social media handle, which was also not responded to.
The story was supported with funding from the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID).
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