The Koyeima Technical and Vocational Government Secondary in the Valunya Chiefdom has been left to collapse over the decades. Established in 1926 after the tradition of the Bo Government Secondary school, the Koyeima Secondary School offered 100% boarding School learning to hundreds of pupils from the four regions of the country.
In truth, it is the only Government Secondary School in the Bo District after the Bo School and it has offered education to many personalities within the country.
As an after effect of the ten years rebel war in the country the Administration of the Koyeima Government Secondary School had to seek refuge in the Bo School. For ten years the School operated on Afternoon Shifts after the normal Morning Shift of the Bo School.
However, upon the conclusion of the war in 2002, the school had to be relocated to its actual school campus of 160 acres in Koyeima village which was in fact founded upon the founding of the school in 1926.
But all that the school’s Administration of Principal Marx B Katta did was to inherit as legacy of the 10 years war a total collapse of almost everything on the former beautiful school campus they left.
A total of fifteen buildings including Dormitories, Classrooms, the Science Laboratory, the school Hospital to name but these few were totally pillaged and burnt down by the rebels.
The then Government of the Sierra Leone People’s Party was to face the heinous task of the rebuilding of the school if education was to kick off again on a sound footing in that part of the country.
But little was done, the Principal Marx B Katta told Awoko. The Government and School Administration had to build two duplex buildings with ten rooms for the teachers. A long classroom building was also built with funds from the European Union. One dormitory that hosts 400 pupils was refurbished too, and the Administrative building was also given a face-lift. All of these works were however poorly done as cracks could be seen in all of the reconstructed buildings. But that was not enough to salvage the situation of putting the school back to its normal position, thus putting education on its normal footing in that area.
With the above description, teachers and pupils are no longer willing to go to that suburb that used to offer an education that was as sound as that offered by the Bo Government Secondary School. “People don’t want to come to the rural areas”-Principal Katta complained.
At present the capacity of the Staff stands at 15 in the Junior Secondary School and the Senior Secondary School. Most of these staffs are untrained, unqualified and underpaid. In fact, 8 of these teachers are not on Government pay-roll, the Principal told Awoko.
As the school is in the rural part of the country, Principal Katta lamented that teachers refuse to go down there considering the poor conditions of salary and infrastructure. Principal Katta elucidated that his teaching staff is filled with non-graduates as graduates don’t accept to take up jobs there. The pupil intake at Koyeima now stands at just above 400, with most of them leaving school when the administration embarks on School Fees collection in the second term. Compounding the issue of poor infrastructure is the other issue of poor sanitation at the School. Marx Katta explained that the pipe networks on the campus are in absolute disrepair.
“Water is a very serious problem. And this is our most urgent need and I am appealing to the District council to please help.” The school is nonetheless at present managing with one hand-pump. He went on to say that though the above is the present standing of the once second-to-Bo School Government School, but that “in take is on the increase yearly.”
It was against this back drop that the principal explained that there is need to pay attention to the rebuilding of the Koyeima Government Secondary School.
The principal stated that he has met many Non Governmental Organizations but that the reply of the NGO’s to his call always was “that is a Government School, so we do not have anything to do with it.”
By Bawoh Joseph Jenkins
ADVERTISEMENT