Students sometimes use the bush

In his four years in Birrel Avenue High school, Yaba, Chibuike Umeh, has dreaded using the school toilet because of its state.

“It’s very messy,” he said. “Every time you go in, you must see urine on the floor, and sometimes you even see faeces on the floor. We usually urinate somewhere behind the (school) building, and when we have to do the main thing (defecate), we don’t sit on the bowl; even sometimes, some students do it on the floor.”

A visit by NEXT to the school was as Master Umeh described; the toilets were dirty and smelly; a visitor would be greeted by the stench about ten metres away from the main entrance. Apart from lacking cleanliness, the toilets lacked basic provisions like toilet roll holder, toilet paper, soap, water, and sanitary disposals.

In the public schools NEXT visited, there was also lack of privacy; some of doors have come off their hinges, a factor common to all the schools.

“Our toilet is very bad; it stinks,” said Kemi Ojo, a senior school student of Girls Secondary Grammar School, Ikoyi, while describing her school toilet.

“It’s the worst toilet I’ve seen. Though it is cleaned everyday by students who get to school late, students still mess it up,” said Ms Ojo.

She said: “The students just use it anyhow, and it’s like that because the teachers don’t go there to check how it is used. There should be someone on standby to clean it up and check every time a student goes in.”

At Lagos City College, Sabo, the toilet was locked, and the students are required to collect the key from a staff each time they have to visit. However, most of students said they have not been using the toilet at all.

“The only time I tried to use it, I was shocked because it was very dirty, so most of the students I know don’t use it,” said Kunle Daniel, a senior secondary school three student.

The schools NEXT visited were Girls Secondary Grammar School, Ikoyi; Lagos City College, Sabo; Birrel Avenue High School, Yaba; Herbert Macaulay Secondary School, Yaba; and Wesley Girls Secondary School, Yaba.