•The deconstructed classrooms in Yaba
Lagos State government has intensified efforts to enforce structural integrity checks on school buildings across the state following the discovery of distressed structures in some public schools.
This includes the ongoing demolition of Mainland Senior High School on Onayade Street, Fadeyi, in Yaba Local Council Development Area (LCDA).
Chairman of the Special Committee on Rehabilitation of Public Schools (SCRPS), Hakeem Smith, disclosed this during an inspection visit to the demolition scene, which was based on structural integrity assessments of the affected buildings, reports Saturday Guardian.
He said that the committee’s mandate is to ensure that all public primary and secondary schools in the state meet safe and habitable learning standards.
Smith, while speaking on the demolished school building, explained that during a routine inspection, a building initially slated for renovation was found to have been previously marked for demolition but left standing.
“As a standard procedure, we conducted structural integrity tests before taking any action. The results showed that not only did the identified block require demolition, but another nearby structure also posed serious risks,” he said.
Smith added that while two buildings are being demolished, one structure within the compound would be rehabilitated to meet safety standards.
He said that the affected students had been temporarily relocated to nearby schools to allow for safe demolition with plans to construct new classroom blocks to accommodate the growing student population.
“We will assess the student population to determine the number of classrooms required. Once approvals are secured, construction is expected to be completed within nine months,” he stated.
Chairman of the committee on rehabilitation, while emphasising commitment to conducting integrity tests on existing school buildings, noted that all new constructions would be built to meet international standards, including proper soil testing and structural design.
Meanwhile, Coordinator of the Building Collapse Prevention Guild (BCPG), Yaba Cell, Adebayo Ogunrinde, reiterated the group’s commitment to safeguarding lives by identifying and preventing structurally unsafe buildings in schools across Yaba.
He noted that the BCPG played a whistle-blowing role by reporting the findings to the appropriate authorities, including the Lagos State agencies responsible for building safety, which subsequently carried out official structural tests.
According to him, the primary mandate of the BCPG is to prevent building collapses by proactively identifying structures that pose risks to occupants.
He noted that the Guild had partnered with SCRPS to extend similar inspections to other schools within Yaba to ensure the safety of students, teachers, and members of staff.
He declared that there is a paradigm shift from reactive responses to proactive prevention, saying: “We don’t want to wait until a building collapses before we begin to act. Our goal is to prevent such incidents entirely, and not responding after the damage has been done.”
The Onisabe of Igboi-Sabi, Oba Adeyemi Adeniyi, expressed satisfaction over the ongoing demolition of abandoned buildings at Mainland Senior High School, which he said, had been a longstanding concern in his domain.
“I am so happy today that this building is gone. That building has been there for probably about six years abandoned. That building should have gone a long time ago,” he stated.
