By Dooyum Naadzenga
Roman Catholic Mission Primary School Adamgbe, founded in 1932 and the oldest primary school in Vandeikya, is crumbling after decades of neglect, with classrooms missing roofs, bare walls and only chalk-and-blackboard instruction for pupils, community members and education advocates say. The derelict condition stands in stark contrast to the well-maintained St. Robert Catholic Rectory nearby, prompting sharp criticism from Dr Ngutor Anyam, Director General of the Prof. Sebastine Tar Hon SAN Gubernatorial Campaign Organisation.
Visitors to the school found classroom blocks whose roof sheets and timbers have been torn away by wind and rain, leaving interiors exposed to the elements and pupils without proper shelter. Desks are few and often unusable, teaching aids are virtually nonexistent, and teachers continue to rely on traditional methods amid a severely compromised learning environment. Alumni and parents warned that continued neglect threatens the prospects of children from Adamgbe, Mbayongo and surrounding communities.
Founded as the second-oldest primary school in Jechira Land, RCM Adamgbe has a long record of producing prominent figures — professors, politicians and leaders in both public and private sectors — who trace their early formation to classrooms now in disrepair. That legacy, critics say, makes the present state of the school even more painful. “What kind of life will children who pass through RCM Adamgbe live? What kind of people are we becoming?” Dr Anyam asked in a statement dated 17/02/2026, arguing that by abandoning primary schools, the state is mortgaging its future.
The condition of RCM Adamgbe also clashes with repeated assertions from Governor Hyacinth Alia’s administration that it has renovated all dilapidated schools in Benue State and is delivering free primary education. Opponents of the government say the reality at Adamgbe is evidence that those claims do not match conditions on the ground. The campaign director contrasted the neglected school with the conspicuous lifestyle of some state appointees, traditional rulers and religious leaders who reportedly travel the state in high-value vehicles worth as much as N280 million, calling the disparity “painful” and “ironic”.
Education advocates say the situation illustrates a deeper policy failure: investing in higher-profile projects and new tertiary institutions while ignoring the basic schooling that underpins long-term human-capital development undermines any broader progress. “You cannot build a house starting from the roof,” a local education specialist said, adding that strong primary schools are essential to producing competent professionals and leaders.
At the time of reporting, neither the Benue State Ministry of Education nor Governor Alia’s office had responded to requests for comment on allegations that RCM Adamgbe was excluded from state renovation efforts or to requests for the list and criteria used to certify renovated schools. Church officials at St Robert Catholic Rectory did not immediately respond to questions about differing maintenance practices between the rectory and the school.
Community leaders, alumni and the campaign group are calling for urgent repairs – replacement of roofs, provision of desks, basic teaching materials and a transparent review of renovation claims – and say prominent past pupils could galvanise fundraising and advocacy to press the state into action. The appeal is simple and forceful: children in Adamgbe and across Vandeikya deserve safe classrooms and a government that matches its promises with concrete action. The time to act, those voices say, is now.
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