By Francis Ewherido
When we say DELTA STATE NOR DEY CARRY LAST, we are not saying we are perfect people. We are simply saying we naturally crave for excellence. It didn’t start today. In the Midwest Region which was renamed Bendel before Delta State and Edo state emerged from Bendel State, we dominated in sports and academics. In the last National Sports Festival which was held in Ogun State, Delta State came tops on the medals table. This has been a frequent occurrence.
Anyway, the matter today is different. Secondary school students from Delta State who represented Nigeria emerged champions at a recently concluded World Schools Debate Championship held in Doha, Qatar. But that is not the real news to me. Deltans are used to winning. The real news for me is that the Nigerian team, made up entirely of Delta students, who outperformed top contenders from the State of Chicago, USA, and Qatar to clinch the coveted global title are students of public schools! “In a gripping contest, they secured a 2–1 victory in the first round and followed it up with a flawless 3–0 performance in the final round, sealing the championship with an emphatic 5–1 aggregate score!”
These gems are Wisdom Chukwuma (Government College, Ughelli), Otorvo Uyoyou (Alegbo Secondary School, Effurun), Abraham Honour (Okpaka Secondary School, Okpaka), Ekhamateh Splendour (Government Model Secondary School, Asaba), and Alika Daniel (Utagba-Ogbe Grammar School, Kwale). Of these schools it’s only Government College, Ughelli and Government Model Secondary School, Asaba, that are “reputable.” Government College, Ughelli, was established in 1945 and has produced many great men in many spheres of life in Nigeria. Government Model Secondary School, Asaba, is comparatively recent and it is a model school as the name connotes. Alegbo Secondary School is just there as a secondary school. The only renowned secondary school in Effurun in my time is my alma mater, Urhobo College, Effurun, which was established by the apex cultural body of the Urhobos, Urhobo Progress Union, in 1948, before government took it over. Okpaka Secondary School is in a village near Effurun. The only reason I knew Okpaka is because my wife’s first cousins are paternally from Okpaka and my wife used to call one of them who is now late Okpaka. Now you can call Okpaka a town because of the rapid urbanization going on in that axis. Kwale was already a big town when I got to know it in the early 70s, but I am not sure when the school was established.
Why am I going into all these analyses? I was born and did my primary and secondary school in government schools in Delta State. Children of the rich and poor, even those whose parents lived abroad, all went to government-owned schools. There were either no private schools or they were unpopular. The military governments neglected these schools and deterioration started. Entrepreneurs saw the lacuna and started establishing private schools. Government schools were also not enough to accommodate all students as population grew. All my children went to private primary and secondary schools. The same applies to many others who could afford. Now, mainly those who cannot afford private schools send their children to government-owned schools.
Unfortunately, most of the presidents, governors, senators and other top government officials, including ministers and commissioners of education, went to government-owned schools. Yet, we neglected these schools. But you know what? God is not man. He blesses those he wants to bless. These very intelligent students from government-owned schools, some of whom are probably from poor homes, have shone on the global stage. This should prick the conscience of those responsible for education to invest in education. The schools are dilapidated. Fix them. Look at our primary school. Local government chairmen, what are you doing with your humongous federal allocations and internally-generated revenues?
Sometime ago, the wall of a primary school in my town, Ewhu, fell on a pupil and killed him. The Local Government Chairman of Ughelli South, Dr. Lucky Avweromre, visited the family of the bereaved to condole with them which is commendable. I was at home last month for the burial of an aunt. I went to see the primary school. New classroom blocks are being built, but I don’t know who is building them. There are four kingdoms in Ughelli South LGA. Let’s one or two primary schools in each Kingdom that make Ughelli South LGA? If you are already doing that, wonderful. If not, look into it, please. Until you became the local government chairman, you were a lecturer, so education should naturally be dear to your heart.
Also, pay attention to primary health care centres in the local government. My late eldest brother and only sister were born in Ewhu Maternity in the 50s. That was before independence. The colonialists knew the importance of primary health care. It should not be different in 2025. Maintenance and upgrade should a continuous process. The state government did some upgrade and provision of facilities in the past. I am only using my town and local government as examples. This should apply across the federation. Local governments are closest to the people. They should serve the locals. That’s why they were created and named “local government area.”
Congratulations to the Delta State Governor, Elder Sheriff Oborevwori and his predecessors on the feat in Qatar by Team Delta. The feat is not by accident. Coincidence occurs, but give people their flowers. Your Excellency, you worked for it. It is a deliberate effort by the Delta State Government. I just urge you do more. I was home last month. I passed through secondary schools that need attention. I also saw schools where constructions/renovations were going on. Please continue to invest in education. But you cannot be everywhere, so ensure that your commissioners of education and ministry of education officials are on their toes. Many teachers and heads of schools are playing truancy. Whip them into line.
There is nothing wrong with teachers having other streams of income. My father was a classroom teacher and later principal. We had farms and we were almost self-sufficient in food production. But his teaching job came first. A situation where teachers use school hours to pursue personal enterprise and neglect students is unacceptable. After school hours, weekends and holiday periods are enough time for personal hustles. Some of these teachers have their children in private schools, so they don’t care. God is not a man o! Who told you your children in private schools will do better in life than the ones you are neglecting in public schools. The performance of Team Nigeria comprising Delta State students should be an eye opener to you. There is nature and there is nurture, Nurture is on the concurrent list between God and man, but nature is on God’s exclusive list. Man cannot do anything about it. That is why the son of a poor man will one day sit on the same board with the son of a rich man. The son of a poor man might even be the employer of the son of a rich man. God’s ways are not ours and He only understands.
