NAN-H -92
Debate
By Douglas Okoro
Obiozara (Ebonyi) March 9, 2017 (NAN) Gov. Dave Umahi of Ebonyi has tasked parents to invest in the education of their children to ensure a better future for them.
Umahi gave the advice at Community Secondary School,Obiozara, Ohaozara Local Government Area of the state during the inauguration of the 2017 Inter Secondary Schools debate.
The governor, who was represented by the Chairman of the Council, Mr Mark Onuh, said that it was the right of every child to receive proper education.
He said that qualitative education remained the only tool to conquer ignorance and poverty, adding that sound education bred good citizenship.
“It is the duty and responsibility of parents to ensure that their children are properly educated.
‘’I want to add that providing good education is a debt we owe our children to make their future bright.
“Education is the only enduring legacy we can as parents bequeath to our children and we cannot fail them in this regard.
“I therefore urge parents, with all humility, to ensure that their children are given the best of education to enhance their capacity and future wellbeing,’’ Umahi said.
He said that the inter secondary schools debate, sponsored by state government, was designed to sharpen the intellectual ability of the children.
The governor further said that the exercise would help secondary school students to cultivate the culture of reading and research, thereby eliminating laxity and truancy among them.
Umahi said that the state government had done so much in upgrading the school in terms of infrastructure, training and retraining of teachers to enhance qualitative teaching and learning in public schools.
He urged the organisers of the debate to come up with topics that would help in addressing contemporary socio-economic, cultural and political problems in Nigeria.
“Ideas generated through the exercise could help policy makers evolve strategies that can be used to tackle some of the contemporary challenges facing us as a nation.
“I therefore urge the organisers of the competition to use the platform to bring up for debate, issues that will assist us as a government come up with strategies to handle some of the current challenges afflicting the polity,” Umahi said.
The inaugural topic of the 2017 debate is ‘Contributory Pension Scheme, Key to addressing Pension Problem in the Country’’.
No fewer than 40 public and private secondary schools across the state are participating in the exercise. (NAN)
ODO/OIF/DUA
Edited by Ifeyinwa Okonkwo/Dada Ahmed