David Iheke is the proprietor of Destiny Kings/Queens Model Schools, Nasarawa, Nasarawa state. In this chat with Uji Abdullahi Iliyasu, he talks about the significance of Children’s Day and cognate issues.
Significance of Children’s Day
Children’s holiday is very important to us at Destiny Kings/Queens. There is a saying that all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. We cannot continue to satisfy the cognitive domain of our children without the psychomotor and affective domains. The three are necessary for overall development of the child. So, we celebrate the children on the special day set aside to appreciate their importance to households and the society. This is a day all Nigerian children and youths should leave academic work and make merry together. On this day, children of the rich and the poor mingle together for a common purpose. On the day, both the brilliant and the less brilliant children do things in common. Last year’s celebration fell on Sunday, yet we celebrated it on Monday. We cannot afford to sweep under the carpet issues regarding children. That is why we will always celebrate Children’s Day even if no other school is marking the day here. Children are important as next generation leaders. Holidays are not just for formality but for a purpose. As you can see last year, we made the children happy as we engage them in extra-curricular activities.
Why many schools shun Children’s Day?
Many schools avoided Children’s Day celebration because of the huge cost attached to it. But as leaders in the industry, we advise other schools to emulate us. Whatever business you run you must meet cost. We must appreciate God’s gifts to us.
Dream for his pupils
We prepare leaders who will rule the world tomorrow; students who will be presidents, ministers, governors, law makers, directors, military and paramilitary heads, traditional leaders and the like. Our children are destined to rule their world. We lead, others follow. As you can see, we are celebrate the children on every May 27, which no school is doing here. My pupils are to set pace for others to follow.
Inspiration to establish children’s academy
Education is vital to human development. There is no true nation-building without education. So, as a good citizen, I thought it wise to contribute to the building of the society in my own way. I have been living in Nasarawa for not less than 39 years. In Nasarawa, I discovered that the children were lagging behind in terms of quality education. So, I saw the necessity of establishing an academy for children in order to bring more light to the community. Education is light and children are the leaders of tomorrow, so training Nigerian leaders for higher task of nation building was my inspiration.
Why Destiny Kings/Queens?
Destiny is the hands of God in human affairs. It is the manifestation of God’s plan for His creations. My name is David. David was destined to be king over his people, so I chose the name destiny because my pupils/students are destined to lead in their fields as future leaders. And where there are kings, there must be queens. That is why we are Destiny kings/Queens.
Challenges and success stories
In any undertaking, there must be challenges, but our school, with all humility, is the best in town, as our song reveals: “The best school so far in this town, the people call it Destiny Kings…” Parents rush to our school because we have what it takes to give to their children and wards. We have qualified teachers and a monitoring team, which supervises the activities of our teachers. This is the secret of our success.
Financial assistance from government
No government subvention at all. Sometimes, government would invite us for the celebration, but after all had been spent and rigorous practices for the day done, they would announce that the celebration had been postponed. All we have been having is a bundle of disappointments. For funding, government does not do that in any way; instead, they keep taxing us here and there. We once applied for teachers on secondment but all we got was disappointment. At least 10 seconded teachers would have been OK. We have neither received any money from government or non- governmental organisation.
Destiny graduates in higher schools
Our school name carries a powerful message. Here we lead children to their destinies. Our graduates are leading all over the higher schools they proceed to. All our products have been making waves in all their fields. In federal Polytechnic, Nasarawa, for example, our students are one of the best they have. One of our students has got admission to the prestigious Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA). Our students are all over unity schools across the country.
Tolerance in the school
In destiny we are a family. We tolerate one another. There is no discrimination on the basis of religious, ethnic or parental background, among students or staff members.
