By Onwa Ekor
The 1995 set of the Government Secondary School, Henshaw Town, Calabar, (GOSA ’95) has donated textbooks worth thousands of naira to its alma mater as part of activities marking its 31st anniversary.
The books were presented to the Principal, Mrs. Winifred Manna, by the Set President, Hon. Felix Ekpo, at the school premises on Friday.
Speaking at the ceremony, Ekpo said the gesture was the set’s way of giving back to the institution that shaped them.
“We are here to give back to the school that made us who we are,” he said, noting that the set has remained united for 31 years despite losing four members, and thanking God for keeping the rest in good health.
Ekpo described the donation as modest compared to the school’s needs, but expressed hope that it would support teaching, learning and character formation of the students.
He appealed to the governor, Prince Bassey Otu, to urgently address the infrastructure deficit in the school, lamenting that it currently has no functional accommodation, laboratory or toilet facilities, including those for female students.
He also urged the State Secondary Education Board and the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) to deploy security personnel to protect facilities being put in place to upgrade the school.
Chairman of the 31st Anniversary Planning Committee, Comrade Nakanda Iyadim, commended the school management for sustaining the school despite poor conditions.
He expressed optimism that the State Government, which recently conducted a needs assessment, would soon intervene.
The alumni later toured the dilapidated sections of the school and promised to provide a makeshift classroom for Senior Secondary School 3 (SSS 3) students pending comprehensive rehabilitation by the State Government.
Responding, the Vice Principal (Special Duties), Mr. Emmanuel Bassey, thanked the Class of ’95 for the gesture, saying the textbooks would enhance teaching and learning.
He called on other alumni sets to emulate the act, stressing that government alone cannot meet the standard of educational support children require.
He listed lack of an administrative block and staff rooms as some of the challenges facing the school, adding that some classrooms are makeshift structures that can only be used seasonally.
Other members of the set decried the poor state of the school and called for urgent infrastructure renewal.
