A recent visit by The Nigeria Education News team to the Kwara State College of Health and Technology, Offa, has uncovered a troubling sight: several government-owned and institutional vehicles left to decay within the school premises. The most striking of these are two large school buses parked in the center of the campus—rusted, worn out, and long abandoned, according to students and staff.
These buses, once essential for student transportation and official school activities, now sit idle as relics of mismanaged resources. Several students interviewed said they had no clue about the history or intended use of the vehicles. “They’ve been there since I came to this school,” a second year student noted. “Nobody tells us what happened; we just see them every day as part of the background.”
Close inspection shows that these buses have not only suffered from neglect but are beyond mere repairs. Tyres are flat and brittle, windows shattered, and engine compartments appear gutted or tampered with. A security officer stationed near the admin block remarked that the buses were parked after years of persistent breakdowns and excessive maintenance costs that the school could no longer afford.
What particularly raises concern is the abandoned ambulance in front of the campus medical centre. According to students and a few staff members who spoke anonymously, the vehicle has not been functional for the past two years. “If there is a medical emergency, the school now relies on private arrangements or commercial tricycles to transport patients,” one health technician student disclosed.
The Nigeria Education News team observed that the state of the ambulance sends a disturbing message about the institution’s preparedness for emergencies—especially for a school focused on training future health professionals. Many students expressed fears that the lack of operational emergency vehicles could pose serious risks in critical situations.
Stakeholders say this problem reflects a broader issue of neglect and poor planning in tertiary health institutions across Nigeria. “These are assets that were once paid for with public funds. It is heart-breaking to see them decay like this without replacement or refurbishment,” said a concerned alumnus who was on campus during the visit.
Inquiries made to the student union leadership revealed that while the school management is aware of the issue, no public statements or official plans for vehicle replacement have been communicated to the students. “It’s one of the issues we’ve raised,” said a member of the Students’ Union. “We’ve heard promises before, but nothing has been done.”
With the growing population of students on campus, the absence of reliable transportation and emergency vehicles is not just a matter of aesthetics—it’s a question of student safety and institutional responsibility. Calls are now growing louder among students and civil society organizations for urgent government intervention.
As these vehicles continue to rot in full view of students and staff, they stand as rusting symbols of underinvestment in education and health infrastructure. For an institution tasked with producing tomorrow’s healthcare workforce, the sight of abandoned medical and educational vehicles raises fundamental questions about priorities and planning in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.
