Why over 200 children in Tunga Ashere are not in school

The community head of Tunga Ashere, in Abuja Municipal Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Sani Yakubu, said more than 200 children in the community are not in school due to the long distance they have to trek to school daily. Yakubu said the nearest primary school is in Tunga Nasara, another community […]

The community head of Tunga Ashere, in Abuja Municipal Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Sani Yakubu, said more than 200 children in the community are not in school due to the long distance they have to trek to school daily.
Yakubu said the nearest primary school is in Tunga Nasara, another community about 4 kilometres away from the community while the distance to the nearest junior secondary school is further than that.
He said the children of the community in Gui ward could not trek such long distance thereby left with the only option of accompanying their parents to the farm, which he said, are nearer than the schools.
The community leader who said he keeps a list of the children, noted that he has written to the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) authorities over five times regarding the situation of the children, yet they have been left to their fate.
“Since there is no school in the community, they go to farm as most of their parents are farmers,” he said.
While explaining how he acquired his secondary school education, he said he trekked to the Airport, about 5 kilometres daily to the school nearest to the community through a footpath.
Another resident, Madaki Kasimu, a student of the FCT College of Education, Zuba said trekking far is not for primary pupils and secondary school students, though “I also trek daily to school.”
Unlike adults like him, he said the children are at risk of motorcycle and vehicles accidents that are always speeding on the roads to the community.
Kasimu who said he sponsors himself through the proceeds from his farm, explained that he treks because he could not afford the N600 transport fare to and from school daily.
He said the roads are always worsened by the rain during the wet season thereby making it difficult for the pupils and students to trek to school.