Apac pupils studying in run-down classrooms

With the absence of decent structures, pupils at Teboke Primary School in Apac District continue to study under dilapidated buildings that have put their lives at risk.
The school, which has not had any renovations since its establishment in early 1960s, has a total enrolment of 956 pupils.
Currently, pupils study under dilapidated classrooms due to financial constraints.

However, fear has gripped the school authorities because many of these classrooms cannot withstand heavy rain.
Last Wednesday, a downpour accompanied by strong winds blew off rooftops of three classrooms, a library and the school store.
The affected classrooms are for Primary Three, Primary Four and Primary Five.

Luckily, the Wednesday’s downpour occurred when pupils had already gone back home.
Godfrey Akena, a Primary Five pupil, said: “We sit on dusty floor because there are few desks in our class and the wall of our classroom has already developed cracks.”
Mr Richard Owani, the school head teacher, yesterday said all their buildings are dilapidated and whenever there are signs of rainfall, lessons are disrupted.

He said whenever it threatens to rain, pupils are sent home for fear that the buildings could collapse on them.
Mr Owani said he wrote to the office of the district chief administrative officer last year requesting them to renovate their dilapidated structures, but they did not get any feedback.
“The school has been neglected for a long time and we don’t have the capacity to renovate our buildings because our parents are also poor,” he added.

Mr Francis Odongo Acanga, the school’s management committee chairperson, said his committee has plans to construct only the staff houses.
He said it is the mandate of government to build classrooms.
“This school belongs to the government, we just supervise on their behalf. So we have nothing to do if the government has failed to do their part,” he said.
The district secretary for education and health, Mr Tonny Jasper Odongo, however, attributed the appalling status of many schools in Apac to lack of funds.

“We have many schools which are in a very bad state but the district has not budgeted for their renovation because of financial constraints,” he said.
“However, we have submitted a request for support from the Office of the Prime Minister to support us in the renovation of buildings that were recently destroyed by hailstorm,” he added.
Mr Odongo further blamed the poor status of buildings in rural areas on parents’ negligence.

“Most of those building were destroyed by stray animals and the owners of these animals are our parents,” he said, explaining that during lengthy holidays of third term, most schools become homes to animals.
“In some places, parents are stealing doors, windows in our schools for their personal benefits and this is how our buildings are getting dilapidated,” the secretary for education and health added.
Currently, Apac has 144 schools.

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