The Association of Ebonyi Indigenes Socio-cultural in Diaspora, Tuesday, knocked Governor David Umahi over his recent statement that “tertiary education is not for everybody.”
The aggrieved members of the group disclosed that Umahi’s stance on the matter had vindicated their position that the Chairman of the South-East Governors’ Forum was killing education at all levels in the state.
Umahi had made the statement six days ago when he received a delegation of the Nigerian Police Trust Fund led by Dr. Ben Akabueze, in Abakaliki.
The governor spoke against the backdrop of the ongoing industrial action by lecturers at the nation’s varsities.
This is even as he stressed that it was unreasonable for the President, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to borrow over N1tn to meet the demands of the Academic Staff Union of Universities.
Reacting to his statement on Tuesday in Abuja, the AEISCID President, Paschal Oluchukwu, declared that Umahi’s government had reversed all the gains made in education sector by other previous administrations.
He said, “It’s justifiable to bring to the fore how the man who is advocating for at least basic and secondary education for citizens indeed killed education at those two levels before eventually burying the two state-owned tertiary institutions – Ebonyi State University and the Ebonyi State College of Education, Ikwo.
“All his actions that have left the education sector in its dimwit shadows were inspired by greed and nothing but overwhelming insatiable lust for money in institutions that his predecessors had carefully and deliberately invested in, knowing that Ebonyi remained categorised as an Educationally Less Developed State.
“We are aware that Umahi had inherited an Ebonyi that had a near excellent performance in academic examinations such as the West African Examination Council, the National Examination Council and other competitive academic contests like debates. The State’s Debating Championship team led by Professor Okpata made Nigeria proud even at the continental level.”
Oluchukwu noted that the history of education in Ebonyi state could not be complete without mentioning the invaluable contributions of the first civilian governor, Dr. Sam Egwu, who deliberately offered the indigenes free and compulsory education for up to secondary level.
He noted that the majority of doctorate degree holders and professors, particularly in the state-owned university, were products of Egwu’s HIPACT programme – a carefully planned foreign scholarship programme designed by the education-loving administration.
“This was further consolidated by his successor, Chief Martin Elechi, who felt the need to sustain the education legacies. His government brought Ebonyi to limelight with proper remunerations of teachers and attracting funds and investments in the Universal basic Education Commission. This was in addition to fully supporting and funding the state’s Literary and Debating Society, the state’s Scholarship Board and prompt payment of bursaries to students including sponsoring and supporting law students to law schools.
“In the WAEC’s performance under Elechi, Ebonyi came only second after states like Anambra in the entire South-East region and maintained top in some academic competitions like debate.
“Upon ascending to the number one seat of power however, Umahi, immediately turned the table. The state government first accessed and allegedly misappropriated billions of naira paid into the UBEB by the UBEC just before Elechi’s exit from power in 2015.
“Since then, Umahi has plunged the education sector in Ebonyi into a deeper mess. It is so bad that in his over seven years reign, it has never been reported that he made a brief stop over in any of the public education facilities – be it primary, secondary or tertiary institutions in the state,” he said.
