The roof of the school had fallen and the structure is dilapidated and has caved in as seen in images of the wrecked school obtained by SaharaReporters.
A primary school in the Kaigama ward of the Bali Local Government Area of Taraba State has been left in ruins two years after the elementary school was destructed by a windstorm, SaharaReporters has learnt.
The roof of the school had fallen and the structure is dilapidated and has caved in as seen in images of the wrecked school obtained by SaharaReporters.
According to a community source, the school has been in this condition for more than 24 months since it was demolished by a windstorm, and many calls to the government for prompt help have proven useless.
This was one of the reasons the state housed 499,923 out-of-school children, which is indicative of the dire state of education, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report shows that Taraba State.
Cases of abandonment of capital projects have been very common in Taraba State since 2020.
SaharaReporters reported that despite releasing a total of N36.3billion for the construction of the 230-kilometre Gembu road in Taraba State, the government has failed to deliver the project years after it was awarded to different contractors.
It was learnt that both the Federal and State governments have failed to deliver the road, but officials at both levels have also turned the road into a cash cow; siphoning billions in yearly releases while commuters continue to perish amid other socio-economic bruises.
In 2013, when residents of Mambilla Plateau heard that the 230kilometre Gembu Road was awarded for reconstruction by the Taraba State government, they shared a common feeling—excitement. They thought they could be at least connected to other parts of the state and even beyond.
Years after the contract was awarded, the Taraba State Ministry of Works and Transport dubiously claimed that the project was done, citing “the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the Bali – Serti – Gembu road” as some of the achievements recorded in the state.