From Olanrewaju Lawal, Ilorin
Thousands of Christians, members of various church denominations stormed the streets of Ilorin early hours yesterday morning to protest the taking over of their schools by Kwara state government, demanding that they want their schools back.
All schools in Kwara state, among others, resumed yesterday after a prolonged holiday, occasioned by the outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease.
But the governor’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communications, Dr. Muideen Akorede, in a swift reaction, denied that government had such plan to take over the Christian schools.
It was gathered that the schools were being grant aided by the state government since the year 2006, a development that conferred the ownership status on the government, which the Christian communities rose up to reject.
At about 7am,some of the Christians had gathered at St James Schools, Primary, Junior and Senior Secondary schools owned by Christ Apostolic Church CAC along Yidi road, singing Christian songs and praying fervently for the state government to hand over the schools back to them.
The spokesman of schools owned by the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Pastor Peter Ogunwale, in an interview with journalists, said that the incumbent governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed had requested that the churches write the government officially if they want their schools back and that they have done, a long time without any response from the government till now, a development that prompted the demonstration.
Pastor Ogunwale wondered why the government should be playing politics with the issue, saying that they are not politicians but men of God serving humanity.
