- By; MOHAMMED KAWU, Bauchi
- A students group, Air Marshal Abubakar Sadiq Students (AMASS) Forum has rebuked the Kauran Bauchi -led administration in the state for its lackadaisical attitude to the education sector in the state with the traumatization of students by its scholarship methods.
- It noted with concern that out of the 18, 000 students screened under the state government scholarship programme, only 5, 000 benefitted with miserable sums of N17, 000 per student, when in other states a student carts away a minimum sum of N100, 000 as allowance.
- The Forum’s public relations officer said at a press conference in Bauchi on Monday that education has been the backbone for the development of any society, hence it is the primary obligation of any government to developmentally contribute to the sector.
- Hussaini, who was supported by members of the forum at the NUJ venue of the conference, recalled that the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) had in 2021 gave a frightening figure of Bauchi ranking the 26th of the 36 states and FCT in illiteracy in the country.
- He also expressed dissatisfaction that the medical bond being given to medical students of the state by the preceding administration which is an incentive stipend to all medical students of Bauchi, has the programme disrupted by the present administration despite challenges in the health sector.
- “We witnessed a stormy situation where 200 indigenous health students, 10 from each of the 20 local government areas that were enjoying full sponsorship from preceding administration in Malikiya College of Health in Bauchi were stopped from that benefit, instead of multiplying the number to solve some health problems in the state.
- “Another equally devastating issue in the statistics affirmed that Bauchi is also the 8th in the table of poverty in Nigeria with a figure as high as 61.53%”, Hussaini attributed it to poor administration from the government, which is the hurtful truth.
- Hussaini also recalled that retired Air Marshal Sadiq when he was on the saddle, gave a scholarship to 200 undergraduate and postgraduate students to study in public and private universities within and outside Nigeria.
- He therefore, expressed optimism that with the assumption of Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar (rtd) to the mantle of leadership in Bauchi State come 2023 polls, the education sector will get a boost, thereby salvaging all illiterate indigenes from the shackles of ignorance, hunger and diseases.
- According to him, the forum has much confidence in Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar who if given the mandate, students would be much happier, and education sector would be repositioned to an unprecedented level for growth and development of the state.
