Chief sheds tears after seeing pupils sit on bare floor during lessons

The Development Chief of the Edina Traditional Area, Nana Ekow Ankama I, has expressed concern over the poor furniture situation at Bantuman Akyinim Basic School in Elmina after seeing pupils sitting on the bare floor during academic activities.

Nana Ankama, during a visit to the school with members of the Edina Traditional Council and the Ambassador of the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Ghana, donated 50 desks to the school.

The condition of the classroom, where some pupils had to sit on the floor to write during lessons due to inadequate furniture, moved the Development Chief to tears.

Speaking to Mynewsgh.com reporter Hajia Asana Gordon after the presentation, Nana Ankama said the situation was difficult to witness.

“When I saw pupils sitting on the floor while teaching was ongoing, I was tearing, so I immediately fixed some of the challenges facing the area,” he said.

“I felt really bad when I saw pupils sitting on the bare floor, but I can’t solve problems in all the schools within Elmina,” he added.

He called on philanthropists, stakeholders and individuals to support efforts to provide more furniture for schools within the area.

The delegation also visited Elmina Methodist School Basic at Estiapa, Methodist Junior High School and Islamic Sherif School, where additional desks were presented as part of activities for the Edina Bakatue Festival.

A teacher at Bantuman Akyinim Basic School, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the lack of furniture had affected attendance, with some parents withdrawing their children from the school.

According to the teacher, the school’s population has reduced from 1,050 to 590 due to the furniture challenges.

He also explained that students in the A section had been combined with those in the B section because of the limited furniture, making teaching and learning difficult.

The teacher appealed to government officials and non-governmental organisations to support the school with additional furniture.

The headteacher of Bantuman Akyinim Basic School, Mr Matthew Essel, thanked the team for the support and assured them that the desks would be properly maintained.

-mynewsgh