Parents in Shezheko community, Tungan-Maje ward of Gwagwalada Area Council in the FCT, have expressed frustration over the absence of junior and senior secondary schools, forcing students to trek about seven kilometres daily to attend classes in neighbouring Izom town in Niger State.

Some parents who spoke to Abuja Metro on Monday, described the situation as a long-standing challenge affecting access to education in the community.

They said that despite placing a high value on education, they had no option but to send their children to schools in Izom, in Gurara Local Government Area of Niger State.

A parent, Bulus Mathew, said two of his children had to relocate to Izom after completing their primary education in the community.

“In fact, two of my children are now in SS II in a secondary school in Izom, and by next year they will be preparing to write their WAEC,” he said.

Another resident, Zakari Bisala, said the lack of a secondary school has put children in the community at a disadvantage, as not all parents can afford the daily journey.

“You can’t imagine that our children trek seven kilometres from this community to Izom to attend school because there is no secondary school here,” he said.

He added that some students depend on occasional motorcycle rides to ease the stress.

Bisala also lamented the abandonment of a primary healthcare centre project in the community, which he said had reached about 85 per cent completion before work stopped two years ago.

According to him, residents now rely on Izom for medical services, with pregnant women travelling there for antenatal care and delivery.

“At least, we expected the council authorities to have completed the project by now, but the contractor abandoned the site,” he said.

He urged the council, led by Chairman, Abubakar Jibrin Giri, to mobilise the contractor back to site and collaborate with the FCT Secondary Education Board to establish a secondary school in the community.

Responding, a senior official in the council’s works department, Yunusa Danlami, said arrangements were underway to return the contractor to site before the end of April 2026.

“Actually, what is delaying the completion is funding challenges, but the council chairman has put measures in place to mobilise the contractor back to site before the end of this month,” he said.

On the lack of a secondary school, Danlami said the council had written to the FCT Secondary Education Board requesting the establishment of either a junior or senior secondary school in Shezheko.

“I believe approval will be granted before the end of this month,” he added. (Daily Trust)