Former Governor of Kano state, Senator Ibrahim Shekarau has called for the complete overhaul of the nation’s education system and the upgrade of teachers’ welfare package to help produce skilled graduates who can obtain gainful employment in a rapidly industrialised global environment.
The former governor, who represents Kano Central Senatorial District at the National Assembly, also said that the society is in dire need of a disciplined youth population that can only be produced through cultural and ethical reorientation.
Shekarau, made these remarks while speaking with newsmen at the sideline of the 2021 Biennial Conference of the Committee of Deans of Education in Nigerian Universities [CODENU] held at the University of Abuja, main Campus.
The law maker observed that the recent ENDSARS nationwide protests were spearheaded by unemployment graduates who felt that the nation and the education system have not been fair with its youth population.
Shekarau remarked that every effort must be made by the Federal Government to prevent a repeat of such protests by addressing the issues raised by the protesters such as unemployment, inequitable distribution of resources, injustice and the falling standard of education to create a better society.
“Many of those who spearheaded the ENDSARS protests were university graduates who are unemployed because many of them do not have skills. Lack of employment among youths should constitute serious issues for any nation. Many of the crises in the nation today can be traced to unemployment.
“We also have serious problems with indiscipline among the youth population. The nation has not developed a proper system of upbringing for the youth and this was caused by unqualified teachers who dominate the teaching profession.
“Many of the teachers are neglected by the government and schools. They look haggard and hungry looking and have no respect in the society. The result is that many teachers are not proud to say that they are teachers,” the senator said.
He urged administrators of education to employ only the best and most qualified persons as teachers apart from reforming the teaching profession by setting higher entry standards and regular training for practitioners.Senator Shekarau was later honoured by CODENU for his outstanding contributions to the development of education both as a former teacher, governor and one time minister.
Professor Maichibi Alhas Nok, who spoke at the CODENU Summit, which focused on “The role of teachers in technology driven education process” as its theme, charged educationists nationwide to redouble efforts aimed at salvaging the education sector from “its current quagmire and its speedily sliding fortunes with regards to the performance of graduates of primary, secondary and tertiary institutions.”
The professor of education warned that “should the present sliding trend be allowed to continue, Nigeria will regret its future,” adding, “there is no other profession in the country today that has been so undervalued, especially by politicians who use employment in the education sector as settlement or repayment for political thugs.”
Nok regretted that the under-valuation of the sector has led to sharp fall in the standard of education in the country to the point where Nigeria cannot be ranked near its English speaking neighbours especially at the primary and secondary school levels.
Addressing the sorry state of teachers, Professor Maichibi said Nigerian teachers suffer great injustice in the hands of their employers both in the private and public sectors.
“A teacher is looked upon with contempt, disdain, sympathy, and pity. The teacher walks about with a broken spirit, low morale and lives in abject poverty and is often associated with the misfit in the society that ironically, still entrust their children to be taught by the despised person called a teacher,” he said.
