Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said quality and purpose driven education is a recipe to the present challenges bedeviling the Nigerian society. Speaking yesterday at the University of Nigeria Nsukka, UNN, as the 41st convocation lecturer, the former president said time was ripe for the stakeholders in Nigeria to champion the country’s education system towards enhancing the unity of the country and national development.
He noted that if the educational system was totally reformed, all the challenges facing the country, including that of security, would fizzle out in a matter of time. Although Obasanjo, who delivered his lecture at the Princess Alexandria Auditorium of the university advocated for increased funding to the sector, he however said that the country must not enslave itself to UNESCO policies.
I don’t believe it when you say to me that 20 per cent of my budget should be spent on education alone, what then do I spend on roads, how would I provide infrastructure? I am not saying that figures should not be given but we must see them as guides; we should not be enslaved to those figures,he stated.
In a review of the country’s achievements over the years, Chief Obasanjo who spoke on the topic Education and Development said though successive governments appreciated the importance of a functional educational system, much still needed to be done if the MDGs and the vision 20-2020 are to be realised. Although we now have more institutions of higher learning than at any other time in our history, we are still far from having adequate provisions at lower levels of study,he noted.
The former president stated that in spite of the achievements in the education sector, serious problems such as access, the quality of education, purpose of education and relevance still persist in thwarting the country’s efforts. While highlighting the need to match access with quality, he expressed worry that the quality of Nigerian education products was on the decline, stressing that there is now a pervasive feeling that the products of Nigerian education system are no longer as good as they used to be. The blame should be laid at the feet of stakeholders.
The best education is one that opens our minds to think critically, our hearts to embrace all even when we disagree, and our hands to be practical in all endeavours, he added. He, however said for the country to reach the peak of her developmental targets, there was the need for a deep collaboration among all s takeholders, stressing that while the government should provide an enabling environment, the populace must complement it with goodwill and support.
Also speaking at the event, former Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku called on President Goodluck Jonathan to convene a national conference where security issues affecting the country would be addressed.
Anyaoku, while stressing the need for Nigeria to remain an indivisible entity said it was absolutely necessary to convene a national conference where all the issues affecting the country would be tackled. The former Commonwealth scribe, who chaired the Convocation lecture ceremony said: I want to warn about the seriousness of the current developments in the country, especially the continuing threats to the security of the citizens and the integrity of the nation.
Courtesy: National Mirror