Paschal Emeka, Abuja | Posted Oct 28, 2024
Senator Usman, Lawal Adamu is the Senator representing Kaduna Central at the Senate. He is the Senate Committee Chairman on Basic Education.
He recently addressed members of the Senate Press Corps (SNC) on the need to organize national conference to address the problems posed by the Out of School Children, the lawmaker said that education is the foundation of everything and solution to criminalities, even as he urged parents to imbibe the habit of encouraging their children to go to school, for everybody’s good, and our man, Paschal Emeka was there.
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Excerpts are presented below:
Some people believe that parental orientation, such as religion, where some Muslims wouldn’t want their children to have western education, like the abandonment of Almajiri Schools built in the North during the time of former President Jonathan. Don’t you think that such had all the time been a barrier to education in Nigeria and will affect your planned national conference on education?
Well, I don’t believe that, because when I was growing up in Kaduna, religion had never been a barrier. I can remember in Kaduna, we had missionary schools and you have friends who are Muslims.
During the 60’s, 70’s, nobody was talking of religions, because that time, you have missionary schools of saint this and saint that, and the teachers in those schools wouldn’t ask you about your religion and you wouldn’t ask your teacher his religion. So religion had never been a factor.
What we should focus on is how to upgrade our basic schools, and bring about quality teachers to teach our children, as well as bring about incentives that will compel parents to bring their children to school. And also, we shall, through the amendment Act, make it compulsory for every child to go to school freely and any parent or guardian that fails to register his or her children in school will face the law. That kind of law will make parents to push their children to school.
Talking about 20 million Out of School Children, can you tell us if it is from a particular region, state or all regions, or would you link its cause to cultural or religious background and what are the factors that has been causing it?
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Well, it is not in a particular region and one of the factors that has been contributing to the increase in Out of School Children is the neglect of school structures and facilities. When you go to some primary schools, you see children sitting on the bare floor, while others, sitting outside the school building. That is one of the elements that put our basic education where it is today.
Another factor is the quality of teachers in the schools to teach the children. Parents don’t see any reason to send their children in a school where teachers with half baked education are posted to teach their children.
So we need to look into training of the teachers, upgrading the schools and facilities to make learning conducive and effect attitudinal change so as to meet international standards. As I said earlier, when I was in the primary and secondary schools, we were able to read and write, but today, you see students from primary to secondary schools, going to university, they find it difficult to read, write and make a good sentence. So inability of a class six pupil to read and make good sentence is caused by poor quality teachers.
To have about 20 million Out of School Children, isn’t something to toy with. Can you tell us the source of your data?
We don’t have a data of the zonal Out of School Children. We based that on approximation. In fact, part of our recommendations is that Federal Ministry of Education should get a data list of Out of School Children in each local government, zone and state. That is what we are looking at. The 20 million is an approximation.
Don’t you think that inability to enforce birth control is a serious factor, as is being obtainable in the North where one man will have about four wives and many children?
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No! Birth control had never been a factor. If you go to countries like India, China that are more populated than Nigeria, birth control had never prevented them from sending their children to school.
The problem in Nigeria is inability of parents to take the issue of educate serious. Nigerians don’t value education, so it isn’t birth control. As guardian or parent, your duty is to take your child to school and if the child becomes educated, you will be the first beneficiary of that child. My father took me to school and today, he is the first beneficiary.
If you ignore your responsibility of training your child and allowing him to be wondering about in the streets and he becomes an armed robber, then you will be the father of an armed robber. We should come to terms to know that education is the key; education is the solution to all these criminalities that is happening in Nigeria. That is why we should call this national conference, where we shall let parents know the reason why their children should go to school. If you are sick or hungry, nobody will tell you to go for food or medication. If you know the value of education, nobody will tell you to take your child to school. That is why we are planning the national conference.
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Distinguished Senator Usman, Lawal Adamu, could you highlight the resolution of the Senate on the issue of the Out of School Children in Nigeria?
Well, we presented a report to that effect to the Senate. We reported that we have about 20 million Out of School Children in Nigeria, because, basic education is the foundation of education, especially primary and secondary schools. So for you to put building on a particular land, you have to get the foundation right.
In our recommendations, we pointed out where the Federal and State Governments should collaborate, to upgrade our education to meet up with the educational challenges in this 21st century, like teachers’ training and some incentives that will compel parents to bring their children to school. Those are some of the recommendations we made to the senate.
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Do you think that this national conference will yield any result, as the similar ones organized by the senate didn’t materialize?
Absolutely, because looking at education, it is the key for every country’s development; education is the key for every human being. During the debate, the Senate observed that the basic education should be upgraded to international standard.
I benefitted from the public school and I remember when my father took me to the public school. So we have to bring back that standard, so that Nigerian children should be made to acquire that quality and standard education as we did at primary and secondary schools, during our time. So it is a challenge before everybody, including I and you. We should come together to upgrade basic education in Nigeria. It is a must thing to do, and we must do it, because the issue of insecurity, banditry, is as a result of the Out of School Children.
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There is no way for an educated child to be thinking of carrying the gun, no! Such child will be thinking of going for engineering, agriculture, working in the school, or learning about computer, laptop, among others. So we have to take care of these Out of School Children; take care of basic education of primary and secondary schools in Nigeria, for this country to move forward.