Sunny Anderson Osiebe...
Deputy President
of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, has advised the nation to look beyond oil to
secure economic prosperity for the country.
He insisted the
days of oil as super foreign exchange earner for the nation were numbered or
probably over.
Senator
Ekweremadu gave the advise at the one year anniversary celebration of the
Brickhall School, Abuja, founded by former Chairman, Senate Committee on
Education, Senator Joy Emodi.
Ekweremadu
regretted that while the fruits of massive investment in human capital
development made by Late Chief Obafemi Awolowo through free education in the
Old Western Region, Late Nnamdi Azikiwe and Late Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sarduana of Sokoto in the Eastern Region
and Northern were still being reaped by Nigeria, education has been
subsequently neglected to the chagrin of the nation.
The Deputy
President of the Senate underscored the fact that the way to go for sustainable
growth of the country is education from birth to adulthood.
He said: “Our
economy is in the throes of pain today because we thought the oil windfall
would last forever. Even while it lasted, we dismantled all the necessary
structures, such as fiscal federalism, that would have encouraged competitive
development and massive investment in human capital to enable us maximize our
vast potentials as a nation.
“Without
prejudice to the place of petroleum resources in our national life, we must
face the reality that the days of oil as super earner of foreign exchange are
numbered, if not over. Those who still look up to petroleum resources for the
revival of Nigeria’s weather-beaten economy live in the past and are only
building castles in the air.
“Prosperous
global economies are knowledge-driven and the future only belongs to those who
equip their citizens with quality education right from birth. This is a major
reason most African nations, including Nigeria, are abjectly poor despite their
rich oil and mineral resources, whereas many of their contemporaries, such as
South Korea, with very little or no mineral resources, are among the world’s
leading economies.
“We must look
beyond oil; and we must necessarily invest in education if we intend to make
any headway. It is not a matter of choice, but an pressing imperative”.
While urging
other privately-owned educational institutions to emulate the Brickhall School
in providing high standard, but pocket-friendly education, Senator Ekweremadu
tasked the government and public-spirited individuals and businesses to
prioritise support to educational institutions, whether private or public, through
the provision of adequate supervision, infrastructure, grants, donations, and
tax rebates.
He added: “A
situation where government is only interested in collecting exorbitant taxes
from privately-owned educational institutions, while leaving them to fend for
themselves in terms of access roads, security, water, power, and other social
infrastructures is exploitative, and also unacceptable because it has virtually
driven them beyond the reach of the poor.
“Governments
should be able to provide subsidized lands and other support in exchange of
specific percentage discount for the poor to access privately owned educational
institutions”.
He commended Senator
Joy Emodi, consistently exhibiting innate drive for excellence and national
development through the provision of quality education”.
“Importantly,
Brickhall School has demonstrated that private-owned educational facilities
could provide high quality education at affordable costs and devoid of
exploitation”, he stressed.
In her opening
remarks, Senator Emodi, who also urged governments at all levels to invest
heavily in education, said she was propelled by her training and the decay in
the education system observed during he tenure as the Chairman of the Senate
Committee on Education to better the nation’s education sector in her private
capacity.
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