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From Okey Sampson, Umuahia
The Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, has lauded Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, for his performance over the years he has been in office.
Dr Alausa made the commendation while commissioning the Ogbo Central Smart School in Ubakala, near Umuahia, built by the Abia State Government under Governor Otti, aimed at enhancing education and enabling Abia children to compete favourably with their counterparts globally.
Alausa described Governor Otti as a visionary leader with unwavering commitment to transforming education through strategic investments in human capital.
The Minister noted that sustainable development is not measured solely by physical infrastructure such as roads and bridges, but by deliberate investments in education and the intellectual capacity of the people.
“The Governor’s education reforms are aimed at equipping every child in Abia State with the knowledge and skills required to compete successfully at the local, national and global levels,” the Minister asserted.
“When you have a Governor that is committed and thought and said, ‘I’m going to build a smart school, not just one, not two, not three, not four, but ten, twenty,’ that’s a Governor that cares for the people. That’s a governor who wants your kids to lead Nigeria and lead the world.
“Today, your kids and Abia children will sit in this school. They will get the best educational material that a child in America, in London would also have right here in this community. They will learn how to use AI. Five years from now, ten years from now, Abia will lead the world,” Alausa stated.
Governor Otti said the smart school in Ubakala is the first of three such projects to be commissioned this month across the three senatorial districts of the State.
He added that another 17 smart schools, one in each Local Government Area, will be commissioned for use by pupils.
“Evidently, Abia has moved into a new era of technology-driven and participatory model of learning.
“Each of the 20 smart schools that will dot our landscape by the end of the year shall be equipped with an interactive board, and each pupil – 300 per school, 30 in a classroom – will be handed a tablet to support their learning experience,” Gov. Otti stated.
He noted that the events of the past 24 hours – the commissioning of the Manu-Tech UniPod and now the smart school – are indicative of his administration’s priority for the remainder of the year and beyond.
“Today, we are here to commission a smart school that promises to change the face of public education in the State. The overarching agenda is to transform our human capital into the central engine of economic growth and accelerated development.
“Our focus has gone past the old mindset of going to school to pick a certificate and join the queue of job seekers thereafter. We are poised to launch a mass of educated and visionary leaders who will go on to harness the untapped resources in our environment for widespread prosperity, as we see in other parts of the world,” Gov. Otti stated.
The Governor declared that education in the smart schools will be free and compulsory. He warned against all forms of extortion by teachers and any attempt to vandalise school infrastructure anywhere in the State.
He directed the Commissioner for Works to install speed limits on the Ubakala road and the Commissioner for Environment to address the erosion menace in the area.
The Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Goodluck Ubochi, said that with the launch, Abia State is preparing its children for the future.
