The Senate Leader, Sen. Victor Ndoma-Egba, says education is the only solution to the persistent security challenges facing the country.
Ndoma-Egba, who said this in Calabar on Friday during his Scholarship Awards’ ceremony, said that with good education, the Nigerian society would be safe for everyone to live in.
“Today, we have the Boko Haram and other forms of security challenges facing the country. We can only address the problem of insecurity when we educate the people.
“The only time we can feel safe in our society is when everyone is educated,’’ he said.
Ndoma-Egba said that he instituted the scholarship scheme so as to assist the youth in Cross River Central Senatorial District in their quest to achieve their life ambition.
He, nonetheless, stressed the need for the beneficiaries to make maximum use of the scholarship awards by studying hard, pledging to assist them to secure employment after their education.
Ndoma-Egba, however, said that the selection of the beneficiaries was not hinged on any political considerations, adding: “The beneficiaries were chosen purely on merit.’’
In his speech, Prof. Offiong Offiong, the Commissioner for Education, said that Ndoma-Egba’s scholarship scheme was complementary to the state government’s human capacity development programme.
The commissioner, who was represented by Ebri Eteng, the Executive Secretary, Cross River State Scholarship Board, said that such partnership was desirable in efforts to fast-track the state’s development.
“This Public-Private Partnership will reduce financial burden on parents and students. It will also help in stimulating the spirit of healthy competition among our youths in the quest for academic excellence,’’ he said.
Offiong called on other personalities to emulate the gesture of Ndoma-Egba by assisting the less-privileged members of the society.
Earlier, Dr Margaret Ndoma-Egba, the Chairperson of Ndoma-Egba Scholarship Foundation, said that 30 undergraduates and 12 post-graduate students benefited from the scholarship scheme annually since 2008 when the Foundation was established.
She said that five students were selected from each of the six local governments areas of the senatorial district for the undergraduate category, while two were selected from each of the council areas for the post-graduate group.
“So since 2008, Sen. Ndoma-Egba has sponsored the education of 270 undergraduates and 48 post graduate students from Cross River Central Senatorial District in tertiary institutions across the country.
“A total of 318 students have so far benefited from the scheme,’’ she said.?