By Francis Sadhere
Former Minister of Education and Governor of Kano State, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau has said that Former President Goodluck Jonathan, established more private Universities in the country than any other government in the history of the nation.
He said the establishment of more universities by the former president has help in building the human resources in the country, adding that education is the key to the development of any nation.
Malllam Shekarau who stated this in his keynote address during the official opening and maiden matriculation ceremony of Edwin Clark University, Kiagbodo, in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State, also commended former President Goodluck Jonathan for making education available to majority of Nigerians.
In his Keynote Address, titled Role of Tertiary Education in Nation Building, Shekarau emphasized that education is the greatest weapon for the development of any nation, adding that private participation in the education sector will help to increase youth capacity in the nation.
The former Kano State Governor stressed that no nation can grow more than the quality of the education of its citizens, adding that for the education sector to grow, checking the management of education should be paramount to our leaders. He emphasized the in his short period as a minister, eleven universities were established in the country.
He said lack of adherence to strict regulation in education administration is the cause of weak national building policies of successive administration in the country.
Mallam Shekarau commended the effort of former Information Minister and Niger Delta Elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, who was robed as the first Chancellor of the University, for building the Edwin Clark University to the benefit of posterity, calling on all well meaning Nigerians to invest in the education sector by establishing more private universities as government universities alone cannot cater for the educational needs of Nigerians.
He stressed on the need for the university management to check the activities of their students at all times, noting that cultism and all forms of vices are on the rise in our institutions because universities have failed to put the students on check at all time.
The former education minister during former President Jonathans administration, charged the pioneering student of Edwin Clark University to be worthy ambassadors of the university, adding that the success and otherwise of the university lies in their hands.
He advised the students to eschew themselves from all forms of vices in the society and instead, learn how to play the role of peace builders in the society.
Mallam Shekarau also stressed on the importance of technical and vocational education, noting that education is not all about theories but about acquiring skills that will sustain student when they graduate from school. He said government jobs are no longer available to graduates and that is why they have to acquire technical skills to rise above the challenge of unemployment in the country.
He therefore, urged the Federal and State governments at all levels to ensure that technical and vocational skills are incorporated into university curriculum.
