February 13, 2018

The Zone A Coordinator of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Malam Umar Faki, has called on the Federal Government to declare emergency in the nation’s education sector.

Faki made the call in Daura, Katsina State, on Tuesday, when he addressed thousands of students of the Yusuf Bala Usman College of Legal Studies during a one day symposium on free digital skills training for the students.

He lamented the dilapidated and comatose nature of the nation’s education system, especially in recent time, stressing that most of the infrastructures in our schools are not functional.

The coordinator said the Federal Government needed to construct additional lecture theatres, students’ hostels as well as recruit additional capable and able teachers.

He added that teaching and learning would suffer without atmosphere conducive for learning.

Faki used the occasion to commend the Federal Government reforms on agriculture, anti-corruption drive and its commitment in rejuvenating the education sector through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (ETF).

He cautioned the students on engaging in inimical practices that were capable of jeopardising their future and mars the socio-economic development of the nation.

He stressed: “we would resist any act of deviance and unwholesome behaviour on our campuses.’’

Faki warned the students against examination malpractice or being used by politicians as political thugs to foment trouble, saying: “a responsible and reasonable student need not to associate himself with anything sinister and detrimental.

The coordinator said that the zonal office of the association has since commenced a sensitisation visits across all campuses under the zone on the dangers of cultism, drug abuse and other related crimes.

In his remarks, Chairman of the occasion, Malam Lawal, Mni commended the students for organising the skills acquisition training.

Mni described the training as timely, educative and very beneficial to the students, stressing that digital generation has come to stay as analogue era was gone.

He commended the commitments and determination of the administration of Gov. Aminu Masari on its strides in imparting skills on youth on digitisation as well as providing agricultural skills.

He called on the management of the college to incorporate in its curriculum skills and entrepreneurship acquisition and empowerment programmes, stressing that doing this, would make your product independent, creative, innovative and inventive after graduation.

Prof Sadiya Sani, the Provost of the institution, who presented a paper on the problems and challenges facing the youths in Nigeria, identified unemployment, lack of good education, drug abuse as some the major challenges affecting the youths.

Sani called on the youths, especially the students to create a vision and mission for their future through problems identification and arriving at feasible solutions to the identified challenges.

She described the youths as agents of transformation through job creation and complementing government efforts at bringing development, saying `youths are the vanguards of change.’

The provost warns: “don’t allow yourselves to be used as agents of destruction because of political or religious sentiments as every religion preaches peace and unity.’’

NAN reports that symposium attracted many lecturers, students and top government bureaucrats.