NAPPS President Tasks School Owners On Safety Of Learners, Calls For Review Of Child’s Right Act

By Daniel Dafe

School owners, educators and administrators have been called upon to take absolute responsibility to ensure the safety of the children put under their care.

The call was made in an address by the National President, National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, NAPPS, Chief Yomi Otubela, in celebration of the 2022 Children’s Day celebration that took place on Friday.

The NAPPS’ theme for this year’s celebration is ‘Building a Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy Toward a Safe Learning Environment for the Nigerian Child.’

He added that “learners should feel safe to actively face their studies without fear or distractions while anxiety being often generated in the minds of the parents should be doused through a well-formulated and implementable child protection policy in schools.”

“I need to emphasize that a comprehensive Safeguarding and Child Protection policy should apply to all members of staff, board of trustees, volunteers, parents, students or anyone working on behalf of our schools,” he opined.

He said the contents of the safeguarding and child protection policy should among others seek to protect and value the children, create an environment that will encourage children to develop a positive self-image, encourage children to develop a sense of independence and autonomy in a way that is appropriate to their age and stage of development, provide a safe and secure environment for all children, share information about child protection and good practice with children, parents, staff and volunteers and share concerns with relevant agencies and also involve parents and children appropriately.

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Continuing, he said that the said policy should promote and prioritize the safety and wellbeing of children and young people, ensure everyone understands their roles and responsibilities in respect of safeguarding and they are also provided with appropriate learning opportunities to recognize, identify and respond to signs of abuse, neglect and other safeguarding concerns relating to children and young people, ensure appropriate action is taken in the event of incidents/concerns of abuse and support is provided to the individual/s who raise or disclose the concern, ensure that confidential, detailed and accurate records of all safeguarding concerns are maintained and securely stored, prevent the employment/deployment of unsuitable individuals and ensure robust safeguarding arrangements and procedures are in operation.

Furthermore, he enjoined school owners to as a matter of priority develop child protection policies in schools in line with the recommendation from the appropriate authority.

“I encourage home-school collaboration as further measures to protect learners and safeguard their rights. In the light of this, we, urge parents to always check and put appropriate restrictions on the use of technological devices such that learners are not open to viewing sites with adult content. The same restriction should be done for TV channels that are not child friendly.

“In the same vein, parents are called upon to closely watch their own behaviours, for example as they share online content, as they use digital technologies throughout the day, or as they allow their children to access these technologies.

“Also, parents are advised to pay special attention to the emotional needs of their children. For children, affectional neglect may have devastating consequences, including failure to thrive, developmental delay, hyperactivity, aggression, depression, low self-esteem, running away from home, substance abuse, and a host of other emotional disorders. The results will often lead to a decline in academic performance,” he said.

He thus urged parents to help the school management to ensure that their children adhere strictly to the policy of the school management just as they are also encouraged to adopt “positive digital parenting” aimed to provide children with adequate resources to engage in the digital environment safely and responsibly.

Speaking further, he called for a review of the Child’s Rights Act to accommodate other emerging issues relating to the protection of children while urging states in Nigeria that are yet to adopt the Child’s Rights Act in their laws to do so in the interest of the children.

He noted that in the last few years, Nigerian children have had a fair share of the insecurity challenges that have continued to ravage the country.

He tasked states and the Federal Government to ensure that children are properly protected in the various schools so that they can go about their academics safely, adding that government security operatives must collaborate with the internal security arrangements in schools for effective monitoring around schools.

Meanwhile, the Chairman, NAPPS, Delta State, Deacon Monday Ifoghere, has said that in recent times, learners have become endangered species as a result of kidnapping, sexual abuse, bullying, molestation of children.

He said: “Our environments are no longer safe for both children and their teachers. What is happening to the internally displaced children in the IDP camps can better be imagined. What is the fate of the children kidnapped from their schools and are still in captivity?”

He called on all stakeholders in the education sector to deliberately formulate policies that will ensure a secure environment for children to learn.

According to him, “before now, most children just hear of the day as a non school day and only a  few are aware of the day when they are invited for march pass by the Local Government Area offices,” adding: “Now , we want every learner in our schools to look forward to this day and celebrate it.”

“Those of us that nurture these children for the future have resolved to champion this annual event,” he said.

Also, he called on all NAPPS children to concentrate on their studies more than ever before, just as he advised them to avoid bad companies, cultism, quick money syndrome and examination malpractice.

“Be respectful, loyal to your parents and your teachers; be God fearing. Education is not a scam. Things still get better with quality education of the individual. Things have changed, and things are still changing. Embrace the electronic Learning system. Make good use of the available eLearning applications and always visit Google,” he added.