It’s not an easy task but combining his determination and experience as a former education minister, Gov Wike is squaring his chest against poor education in Rivers state as GODWIN EGBA reports.
It is often said that success in the leadership of any organised human sector does not come on the platter of gold. There are certainly many challenges for the leader to tackle on his way to overcoming any challenge. This is the case of the Rivers state governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, who has proved to the people of the state that he is not a leader who fights and run away; rather the one that fights to live in order to fight another day.From 2015 when he took over the mantle of leadership as elected governor of the state made up of 23 local government areas to date, he has shown by every step he took that he is indeed a leader. Obviously, when he came on board, he discovered that aside the milk and honey state of the oil-rich region, other critical socio-economic sectors like education was strewn with rot to the face such that it requires surgical operation.The governor’s special adviser on electronics media, Mr Simeon Nwakaudu, is armed with facts and figures to tell the world about the positive results being realised from the governor’s revolution in education since his inception of leadership in the state.
In his well-articulated analysis entitled: ‘Rivers 2019 WAEC ranking: A confirmation of Governor Wike’s success in the education sector’, he said as a former minister of state for education and later as supervising minister of education, Wike knows the right techniques and routes towards improving the education sector of the state. From 2015, when he took over the reign of leadership in the state, he has tactically approached the challenges in the sector with a view to addressing the deep rot he inherited from the failed immediate past APC administration in the state.
Statistics of performance in WAEC
The WAEC rankings for the state since 2016, for instance, shows improvement in the quality of investment in the sector. The governor simply continues to work on the system quietly without emphasising the sustained improvement achieved.The fact of the sustained improvement is emphasised by this data as provided in WAEC ranking for the 36 states including Abuja.For example, a year after Wike took over, the records began to show improvement with 2016, the state taking the fourth position, 2017 it took the second position. In2018, the state again took the fourth position while in 2019, it retained the fourth position.
Education is the best legacy- Wike
According to the governor, “In Rivers state, the state government has prioritised education because it is the best legacy any administration can leave for future generations.” With a high percentage of investment in basic and senior secondary education by the Wike administration, it is expected that the state can only remain among the top states in WAEC ranking. Although opposition parties are unwilling to accept the reality of the strategic sustained growth in the sector, but obviously the 2019 WAEC ranking is a confirmation that the Wike-led administration is on the right track.
Over the last four years, educational facilities in 23 local government areas have been developed and equipped. More schools have been slated for reconstruction by the state government and are to be equipped for functional learning tools. These schools are spread in all the 23 local government areas of the state. By the time Governor Wike concludes his second term in 2023, over 1,000 basic and senior secondary schools would have been reconstructed and equipped.Beyond the reconstruction and equipping of schools, the state government under the leadership of Wike has engaged in the training and retraining of teachers. The training and retraining programmes have been driven by the state Universal Basic Education Board, Rivers State Senior Secondary Schools Board and the Ministry of Education. The administration also subsidised the registration fees for Rivers students undertaking the West African School Certificate Examination (WAEC) and the National Examination Council Examination (NECO) and sustained provision of science equipment, chemicals, materials and consumables to all secondary schools in the state for WASSCE and NECO examinations.For the UTME examinations, beginning from 2020, Blueprint gathered that the state government would bear the cost for indigenes and non-indigenes. The empowerment of the future generation through education, it was learnt, is a deliberate policy of the Wike administration. The results streaming in yearly are planned for the good of the state.
Attention on private schools
To expand the scope of quality basic and senior secondary education, Governor Wike inaugurated a committee for the accreditation and approval of private schools in the state in order to embark on a comprehensive assessment of schools with the objective of enhancing the standard of education. Inaugurating the committee , Wike noted that basic and senior secondary education levels are important to the development of education. He said, “I plead with you to be committed to delivering on this assignment because it is critical to the development of education in the state.”I respect members of the committee and urge you not to allow anyone to offer bribes to you. How much can they give to you that would convince you to mortgage the future of Rivers children?”Governor Wike said the state government is committed to ensuring that private schools are of approved and quality standard with the right facilities and qualified teachers. The ultimate goal of the state government’s investment in the education sector is to create a knowledge-based society and develop an economy that is beyond petroleum. From 2016 to 2019, the progress of Rivers state in WAEC shows that Governor Wike’s success is not a flash in the pan. It indicates that the future of the states is secured and in safe hands.Even though it is true that the state is yet to get to the desired destination in that sector, however, it is also more significant that the journey to the destination is unwavering just as Governor Wike is effectively lifting the state to the desired position as he promised Rivers people since 2015.
