By Francis Sadhere
EX- education Commissioner in Delta State, Dr. (Mrs.) Veronica Ogbuagu has donated several books to the National Reformer Newspaper in Warri, Delta State.
Making the donation of the books cutting across various fields at the formal opening ceremony of National Reformer Newspaper’s office in Warri/ Discourse on the State of the Nation, the former Commissioner decried the dying of reading culture in the country.
While commending the newspaper for organizing the Discourse on the State of the Nation, Dr. Ogbuagu tasked management of National Reformer Newspaper to play a leading role in reviving the dying of reading culture in the country.
She said, “I must say that I am happy with the Discourse on the State of the Nation being organized today by your newspaper. It is coming at a very crucial time in our country.”
“I have decided to make the donation of these books to the library of your newspaper so that our people, especially our children will have access to these essential books. Our reading culture is dying gradually and it must be revived and you as Journalists have a lot to do in this regard,” she said.
According to her “These books were donated to my NGO, Every Child Counts Initiative for Education (ECCIFED) by the American based Books for Africa for us to equally donate to schools, organisations and others and this is why we are here to donate some of these books to the library of the National Reformer Newspaper.”
Receiving the books on behalf of the management of the Newspaper, the News Editor, Francis Sadhere commended Dr. Ogbuagu for donating the books to the library of the organization, the books will go a long way in boasting our library collections and promised that the books will be put into judicious use.
Meanwhile, the News Editor of National Reformer, Francis Sadhere, explained that the newspaper’s discourse was, “our own little way of contributing our quota to the sea of problems confronting the nation.”
He said; “The elections are around the corner again and our politicians are on the match again. We are using this discourse on the state of the nation to appeal to our politicians that their campaigns should be issue based and not personal.”
“We want to implore them too, not to buy guns for our unemployed youths to kill all of us before and after the elections. If we are all killed before the elections, who are the politicians go to lead? Give the youths gainful employments and not guns. We say enough killings in our nation. Boko Haram should halt their activities and allow our nation to know peace. Our politicians should build more schools and not prisons. They should build hospitals, they should establish industries, give us good roads and bridges. They are out with promises again, promising to build bridges for us where there are no rivers. We do not want such promises again,” the news editor said.
