As Nigeria celebrates her 62nd independence anniversary, some citizens have lamented the decay in the education sector, saying that after over six decades of self-rule, the country has yet to get the system working.

They accused the successive administrations of neglecting the sector and “showcasing their “ignorance” of the role of education in developing countries across the globe.

They, however, urged the government to prioritise education if the country hoped to take its rightful position in the world’s developmental ratings.

Glory Aikeme of Delta State University said the government should implement the UNESCO prescribed allocation of 26 per cent of the annual budget to education to revamp the sector.

“Nigeria at 62 has not paid enough attention to the education sector; what we should be laying emphasis on is proper implementation of the budget on education,” he said.

Mr Aikeme said the government had failed in budget allocation to the sector while most teachers had lost passion for and commitment to the profession.

“I am a lecturer at the university, but we have also failed the students,” he said.

Similarly, Matthew Onuh of Wellspring University, Benin, emphasised that “it is only when government takes education seriously that we in the classroom will ‘know how far, so far.”

According to him, it is public knowledge that the nation is not doing well due to the leaders’ neglect of the sector.

“Government should show serious support for education, if not, I wonder where we are going to be in the next century if we continue with this attitude to education,” he said.

Mr Onuh called for improvement in the welfare of teachers at all levels and stressed that this was necessary to get the best for the school children.

Oh his part, a veteran journalist in Benin, Francis Onoiribholo, said the emergence of the military in governance marked the beginning of education collapse in the country.

He recalled that the sector thrived in the early days of Nigeria’s independence, with brilliant students being offered automatic scholarships to top universities abroad.

Mr Onoiribholo also canvassed for an increase in educational budgetary provision for Nigeria to meet the trends in technology and development.

Also, the Dean of the Faculty of Education, University of Uyo, Ntiaobong Ekong, expressed displeasure with the poor state of education from primary to tertiary levels, especially in public schools.

The professor of Agriculture Education reechoed the call for the government’s urgent intervention in the sector.

Mr Ekong said, “At 62, I want to specifically say that the education system in Nigeria is not as mature as the country at 62.”

He decried the brain drain in the education sector due to neglect and urged the government to prioritise it to enhance the nation’s development. 

(NAN)