In consideration of the enormity of the burden borne by parents whose wards are going through one academic pursuit or the other, the Ifako Ijaiye Local Government Council Chairman Apostle Dr. Oloruntoba Oke has doled out bursary, scholarship awards and other educational support grants to the tune of N2.5 million to 100 students.
Oke, while presenting the cheques at the council’s area office at the NRC building in Iju, however tasked the students to be more studious and gove good account of the council’s magnanimity and investments in their educational pursuit.
He said the growing misdemeanor prevalent among the youths are as a result of the dearth of qualitative education, adding that literate minds are drivers of every functional systems.
According the council helmsman, in alignment with the theme of Governor Babajide Sanwoolu’s administration to impart the people across the local governments positively, the sum of N10million is to be disbursed annually to help indigent students, out of which 2.5million is to be disbursed in this quarter.
He also noted that three outstanding students at the Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) Examination from the area; Ogunseye Ayomide Atinuke, Akinkunmi Ibatula Ayomide and Aderemi Abayomi Samuel, will also benefit from the largesse, adding that same applies for a young pupil who showcased exceptional quality of home training at the recently held Spelling B programme of the council, Master Udeze Dennis.
“We are cognizant of the fact that some parents find it difficult to pay their wards tuition fees given the economic constraints. They have voted and it is time now for them to enjoy the dividend of democracy.
“All the beneficiaries must tell their parents because the essence of the program is to ameliorate their problems of sponsoring through school.
“The money belongs to those who are responsible for financing their academic pursuit, their parents, benefactor and guardian, because we are just trying to reduce the burden on them, so they must tell their parents.
“My message to them is that as students they must focus and concentrate on their studies because of their future because it is only good students of today that becomes good men and women of tomorrow.
“They are future leaders of Nigeria so they have to know what they are doing,those responsible for their education will be encouraged when they do well.
“Anything that will make the youth happy and vibrant is apt because they have shown their vibrancy, absolute loyalty to our party during the election so there is nothing we do for them now that is too much.
“We have very sound youth development programme for all of them.
“They had a thorough screening exercise, these people were tested and some of them who feigned studentship were discovered but we are no fools, we have been students at one time or the other so it is those who are real students that we are attending to.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) Chairman Ifako Ijaiye LGA, Deacon Banjo Omole, expressed his confidence in the chairman, whom he said accords the welfare of the people much preference.
“I think we should appreciate the chairman some people might say let me pocket the money, will you know?
“One thing about the chairman is that he is a compassionate person having been a student too in time past and a man of God who always seek to keep his conscience intact never wanting to offend God in all he does.
“We were friends since 1979 when we started as members of UPN ,we were core Awoist and education cardinal to him.
“He want people to enjoy the largesse of democracy, this informs the bursary awards today, he can give anything to education, bursary scholarship and whatever, he even have those he is personally financing their education aside the council setting, we don’t have much illiterates in Ifako Ijaiye but over 95 percent of them are semi literates and highly literates.
“The lowest you can see will be a secondary school leaver so we are educated and he knows that very well.
“I urge the students who benefited today to forge ahead and study harder to be student of excellence, the cheque of 25,000 naira is a starting point for all of them across board, we want them to thirst after excellence, attaining first class in their academic pursuit should be their focus.
He however raised concern on retrogression of reading culture amidst youngster.
“This chairman built this library in his first term, but it is underutilized, they should read though the internet is there but they should read books as well, it is very important,” Omole said.