St.Gregory’s College Old Boys, Ikoyi, have advised the government to return all secondary schools to old students for quality administration.
This was the notion of some old boys of St. Gregory’s College, Ikoyi, during the unveiling of a solar lighting project for the school’s compound and replacement of the saints’ glasses in the chapel, funded by the ‘74 set, led by its Chairman, Mr Ivoh Ekpe.
An old boy of the school, a retired Justice of the Supreme Court, Bode Rhodes-Vivour, explained that old students had passion to develop their schools.
He said, “I think they should give all the schools back to the old boys/students because the old boys have a passion to develop their schools. Government is not doing much for schools. But if you give it back to the old students, they are more organised. All the development in St. Gregory’s College is done by the old boys. The government has too much on their hands. They should hand over the schools back to the old students. The old students will not have any challenge to sustain the quality of the school because their standard is much, much higher.”
Also speaking, national president, St. Gregory’s College Old Boys, Hon. Justice Adeniyi Ademola, added, “Government doesn’t have any business here. In fact, it’s a Catholic mission who has business here.
“The large amount of the schools in Lagos, primary and secondary, after the decision of the court of appeal years ago, have been handed over back to the missions. I’m in support.” The government should hand them over.”
Another old boy of the school, Mr Ken Oboh, of the ‘65 set explained that government did not have the capacity to administer and fund schools.
He said, “They don’t have the money. They don’t have the wherewithal. If schools are given back to the missionaries and owners, they will be able to finance and upgrade the standard in that institution.
On the contrary, Dr John Abebe, of the 1964 set, opined that old boys should only contribute to what the managers of the schools were doing.