• rues zero investment in basic education
• charges govt, teachers, parents to change the trend
Kwara Rebuilders has condemned the leadership of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State over their failure to invest in basic education in the state during stewardship, citing it as the major reason for the bad ranking of Kwara state in the 2021 West African Examination Council (WAEC) table of performance.
According to a statement issued by its Publicity Secretary, Abdullah Abdulganiy, the group said the ranking has exposed the PDP leadership about their stewardship and investment in basic education in the last ten years.
In the just concluded 2021 WAEC, Kwara ranked 34th out of 36 states of the federation, two years after it was fined by the body the sum of 30.6 million naira for indulging exam malpractice in 165 schools.
WAEC did not hold in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kwara Rebuilders, therefore, questioned PDP’s agenda for education, describing its commitment as zero, while condemning them for bringing the state into national ridicule.
“For over eight years, the PDP government failed to make any meaningful investment in basic education. It was literally killing the solid foundation laid by our pioneers. Kwara used to be one of the best in the whole of the North when we talk about public education. Our basic education produced many past and current leaders. Where did the PDP throw that to? They started by recruiting the most incompetent people as teachers, sharing teaching appointments at party meetings, down to abandoning school structures to the extent that our children were learning under mango trees, in the most inconducive conditions, to diverting UBEC grants meant to develop basic education, causing the state about seven years in blacklist, to breeding a demotivated workforce by not paying teachers as and when due and failing to provide them with necessary materials. The chips are down! We are now getting the consequences of the disingenuous stewardship of the PDP and their failure to invest in basic education.
“The 2021 WAEC ranking is PDP’s scorecard. Killing the basic education perhaps ranks as the worst crimes they committed against the Kwara children and the state. There was something akin to a state-supported examination malpractice trend. That was how they had been ‘packaging’ Kwara State to make up for their failure to invest in basic education. In 2019, WAEC slammed a fine of N30.5 million on the state over widespread examination malpractice. Without the state-supported examination fraud again, PDP and Kwarans can now see the result of their years of investment in basic education in this national ridicule,” Abdullah said in the statement.
He also charged the governor to deepen efforts in facilitating quality education, while advising teachers and parents to partner with the government in overturning this bad slide in the state.
“Kwara Rebuilders commend Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for changing the Kwara story and charting the path to the good old days where the state was a king in basic education. He has renewed our relationship with UBEC and we can see the results so far. He is introducing technology and digital knowledge to our schools. He is recruiting competent hands to teach our children. We appreciate all these great investments. We charge him to continue on this honourable path and do more to salvage the situation.
“We understand that the rot may not be easy to clear immediately, but efforts could still be doubled up to get quick recovery for our basic education that was thrown into the bin by the PDP government.
“Parents should also complement the efforts of the government. We must play our parts to ensure our state get out of this infamy. Teachers should especially have conscience. This is about the future of thousands of children. Teachers should be alive to their responsibilities. We commend the committed and passionate ones. Let’s all play our parts to rescue Kwara State. To the Kwara populace, leaders who have failed our children must never be reinforced to come back to power. They have been tested and they have failed.”
Abdullah Abdulganiy
Publicity Secretary
Kwara Rebuilders
August 24, 2022