Catholic bishop calls for education system that works

From Geoffrey Anyanwu, Enugu

Auxiliary Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Enugu, Most Rev. Ernest Obodo, has called for a good education system that works for Nigerians.

This is as wife of Edo State Governor, Mrs. Betty Obaseki, made a  case for all to be involved in building the educational sector as government alone cannot undertake the responsibility.

They spoke during the commissioning of a newly built 21-seater 40 classroom blocks in Obioma community in Udi Local Government of Enugu State.

Obaseki enjoined private individuals to support education drive by either owning schools or helping government to renovate or build good schools for their respective communities.

She said the nation’s huge population made education nearly impossible for any government to tackle effectively.

Bishop Obodo had in making a case for proper and workable education system for Nigeria said: “There is no system that Nigeria is following in education. Let us have a system whereby by the time a child finishes primary education, he or she already has more information. Look at countries like Germany, France, America, etc, a child has about 90 per cent access to quality education and knowledge in computers and ICT. But in Nigeria the children are not taught, for example here, the teachers live in Enugu and go to school some hundreds of miles away. Some go to school once or twice a week. And the children play about after which they go home without any information or knowledge at their disposal. So let us have in Nigeria a system that works where teachers are well paid and where there is discipline.”

Eulogising the man who built the school, the Group Managing Director, Afri Invest West Africa, Iyke Chioke, Prince of Obioma Kingdom, Mrs. Obaseki said: “Iyke is one who is a scholar, so I believe it is one of his interests to give back to the society, to ensure that many young children are given the opportunity to actualise their potential. So, we need quality education like what Iyke has done and is still doing to ensure that Nigeria breeds a crop of future leaders that would be capable and qualified to manage Nigeria’s economy.”

Prince Chioke said education was key to lifting the future generations out of poverty insisting on quality primary education.

“I want to bring the telecommunications capacity and information age into my local community so that a child in a private school in Ikoyi, Lagos would not have any advantage over a child in this public school in Obioma, my community. So I want to build an army of smart programmers between the ages of 12-14 who could sit in Obioma and through computers, work for companies and earn salaries to support themselves without leaving their homes.”