by Ozioma Ubabukoh, Enugu
Anglican priests in Enugu State on Thursday blocked the entry gates of eight primary and secondary schools in the state, preventing academic activities.
They were protesting an alleged directive to the school authorities by the state Ministry of Education, last Monday, that the schools should cease dealing with the Anglican Church on the ground that the government had repossessed the mission schools.
The affected schools are located within an environment formerly known as Women Training Centre.
The secondary schools are Urban Anglican Girls Secondary School, Metropolitan Anglican Secondary School and City Anglican Secondary School as well as five primary schools.
The priests alleged that the state government had started allocating land in the premises of the schools to private developers, an action they considered as “punitive and unfair.” They were dressed in black and white aprons and led by their Chairman, Venerable Moses Ifeanyieze.
The priests arrived the WTC road location of the schools as early as 6.30am and blocked the entrances to the compound. They bore placards that read, ‘Who can battle with the Lord, we say nobody’, ‘Leave us alone and give peace a chance’, ‘Govt should not be partisan’, ‘Take your schools away and leave our land premises’, and ‘Keep off from the church’, among others.
Students and teachers who had reported to school joined the clergymen in the protest.
For several hours, vehicular movement on the busy WTC road was brought to a halt as the clerics marched round the areas in protest over what they regarded as “Enugu government’s selective injustice and unfair treatment to the Anglican church.”
Students and teachers who had reported to school joined the clergymen in the protest.
For several hours, vehicular movement on the busy WTC road was brought to a halt as the clerics marched round the areas in protest over what they regarded as “Enugu government’s selective injustice and unfair treatment to the Anglican church.”
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