We must commend General Babangida for taking the painstaking effort at documenting his time in office as military head of state.
This documentary, will no doubt, contribute to knowledge as far as our national history is concerned. In the introductory part of the book, General Babangida said the essence of the book was to give the teeming Nigerian youths the opportunity to “write their own judgment on various stages of our national history”. Indeed, for those of us who have gone through chapters of the book, we could say it is helping in giving us insightful understanding of key events that shaped our national life, most especially the transition to civil rule which was terminated abruptly.
However, as a students’ body, we find it important to call the attention of General Babangida for a need to convert the billions of naira donated for the construction of a Presidential library to renovate schools (from primary to tertiary) that are in dilapidated conditions in Niger State.
This, we believe, will increase enrollment and retention rate of students in the State. Or, what is the essence of having a library of such value in a State with 40% of primary school-age children out of school (higher than the national average 22%)?General Babangida will agree with us that the increasing number of out-of-schoolchildren in Nigeria, most especially the Northern part is a ticking time-bomb which suggests that our dear country will soon be consumed by it if not urgently addressed.
It is based on the realisation of this that we are calling on the General to reconsider the thought of building a Presidential library but instead contribute to eradication of illiteracy by using the money for the rehabilitation of schools in the State. By doing this, he would have helped in defusing the deadly situation we have found ourselves as a people.We acknowledge the importance of having public and private libraries in the country.
construction of libraries across the country will make access to learning materials easy. As a matter of fact, it will boost literacy rate. But, we are averse to the use of #17bn to construct a library considering the illiteracy rate of the country, Niger State as a case study.
It would have been another case entirely if the library was to be scattered across the State. We call on General Babangida to give it a second thought so that he will not expend the whole #17bn into construction of a library. According to the United Nations, education “is the basic building block of every society.
It is the single best investment countries can make to build prosperous, healthy and equitable societies”. We call on government and stakeholders to ensure that they assist in tackling this menace.
This is quite important because uneducated children easily become willing tools in the hands of criminals.
As at 2022, Niger State has 700,000 out-of-schoolchildren.Government at all level must also implement measures to educate children through well-planned mass education programmed to create a knowledge-driven society. Equally, considering the embarrassing rate at which our colleagues are being kidnapped across campuses, the government must work towards securing the country and make it safe so that schooling could become a priority.
Signed: Comrade Samson Ajasa Adeyemi
NANS National PRO
09037935067
adeyemisamson22@gmail.com
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