Across Rivers State and against the legendary reputation of the State as an educational trailblazer, lie infrastructure, personnel and hapless children in need of attention if the State is to get back on its feet in terms of academic excellence.

From Akinima to Ebukuma, from Obeama to Ogbakiri, from Queens Town to Ke, that deep-seated yearning for kids to get back into the classrooms and be immersed in tutelage that will equip them for the future and enhance their social impact resounds clamorously.

The statistics remain daunting and urgent and urging for stakeholders in both the public and private sector to act and fast enough. Somehow, the debilitating challenges of stakeholding, strategic engagement and the necessary legal framework to act more often than not stand in the way.

But a group that has determined to bypass the odds and build a critical mass of volunteers to act in concert with public and private sector players to herald a renaissance in the educational sector has hit the road running.

The G30 Ibani Voice, a socio-political group that is more a convergence of developmentally-minded professionals from diverse fields of endeavor, is poised to change the narrative of negative educational statistics in Rivers State starting from Bonny Local Government Area. 

Speaking at a STEM seminar the group organized in Bonny Island on Wednesday, June 19, 2019 for secondary school students, President of the G30 Ibani Voice, Dr. Fubara Dan-Jumbo harped on the need for a functional synergy between government at all levels and the private sector in revamping the education sector.

Enumerating the gains of Education in a community context, Dr. Dan-Jumbo noted that Education “breeds confidence, reduces violence and crime in society, creates hope for the future, leads to economic prosperity in the global marketplace, has the power to help societies and world in general change for the better, and helps people to learn from the mistakes of the past”.

To the former lecturer at Coventry University, a synergy between relevant stakeholders would go a long way in bridging the gaping lacuna in the Education sector such a infrastructure deficit, inadequate curriculum content, and less motivated staff.

On her part, a STEM expert and Education enthusiast, Dr Tola Salau advocated that Education should be modeled to conform to current global reality which is deploying technology to solve societal problems.

Using Africa as a case study, Dr Salau posited that successful people across the globe today have one thing in common which was the use of technology, and with Africa’s population growing exponentially, there was the urgent need to rejig the educational curricula to help school kid face-up to new realities.   

In his address at the event, Chairman of Bonny LGA, David Irimagha, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Student Affairs, Boma Halliday encouraged the students to aspire to greater heights and envision great potential as that was the starting point of all great achievements.

“I believe so much in creativity and innate abilities. It is not everybody that is cut out for ideal school; most of the time we look at school as education but they are different. Education is having knowledge about something, mastering a particular art. Important thing is they still impact their world through different ways.”

He further said that “you may not go far if you don’t see much for yourself. As I am looking at you I am seeing potential and prospects already. You need to work on it, these things will not fall on your laps”.  

The icing on the cake was the assurance by the lawmaker representing Bonny Constituency in the Rivers State House of Assembly, Abinye Pepple that he would continue to pursue and partner with efforts at optimizing educational opportunities, especially for members of his constituency.

He enumerated his interventions in education comprising scholarships, educational support fund, and legislative framework to ensure the smooth running of educational systems in his area of representation, promising to collaborate more with the G30 Ibanni Voice to drive the vision of mainstreaming educational development in the area.

With an economic potential as heavy as over a $11 billion annually, Bonny LGA should be tops in Education and human capital development but somehow due to leadership failure, infrastructural deficit, challenging topography, among other reasons, the educational sector in the area is gasping for breath.

As part of the two day event, the G30 Ibani Voice embarked on a schools tour, visiting Community Primary School, Dan-Jumbo, Community Secondary school, Burukiri, Community Secondary School, Abalamabie, Bonny national Grammar School, and Government Girls Secondary School, Finima, among others.

At Community Primary School, Dan-Jumbo village, there was only a decrepit building that has no ceiling, furniture, teachers, library, playground, or sick bay, not even a first aid box in the community.

And this is same with Banigo, Greens-Iwoama, and several other adjoining communities on that axis. Parents have to spend extra to send their kids to Bonny Town to attend schools there.

At Community Secondary School, Burukiri, the school authorities have to improvise big time for students to have atleast a semblance of academic activities. The auditorium, which is like the only building there is split up to take different classes in different parts of the hall. The rest have to squeeze in to three classrooms that lack furniture.

A worse case was the junior secondary where over a hundred students are jam-packed into three halls with no furniture save the few recently donated by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

The building itself falls short of specifications as the contractor did an embarrassingly shoddy job. There are no toilet systems, no staff room, no offices for the principal and other management staff, and laboratories for students to conduct their practicals. Worse still, the school has no fence, thus denying it of access control, security and safety.

One of the teachers, who preferred anonymity, appealed to the State Governor, Nyesom Wike to come to their rescue by providing them with the necessary facilities and teaching aids to ensure academic activities take place there. 

The schools tour revealed the deplorable condition of educational infrastructure in Bonny LGA and the need for a speedy intervention to save what is left of the appalling situation.

Aside the STEM seminar, day 2 of the programme also saw the presentation of awards and prizes to outstanding students and dedicated teachers. The student awardees shot themselves to the top by emerging tops in the oral quiz competition in their respective schools.

Four teachers were selected from the various schools for demonstrating outstanding dexterity and dogged commitment to the academic progress of their students.

They include Regina Udo-Umo of CSS Burukiri (Senior), Dagogo Brown, CSS Abalamabie (Senior), Fikunu Sunday, GGSS Finima (UBE), and Nengi Hart, GGSS Finima (Senior).  

The students are Emmanuel Johnson and Samuel Tamuno (CSS Burukiri, Senior); Destiny Pollyn and Samuel Prince (CSS Abalamabie, Senior); and Esther Nwinka, Blessing Emmanuel and Aniekeme Nathaniel (GGSS Finima, UBE).

Others are Gladden Hart (BNGS, UBE), Godknows Uduak (GGSS Finima, Senior); and two pupils from Christ Army Church Primary School, Bonny, namely Herbert Tamunotonye and Emilia Abbey.