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By Musa Idris Panshekara

The commercialisation of job offers is one of Nigeria’s most familiar new faces of corruption. But, on the other hand, there is a constant increase in the numbers of graduates each year produced from different universities and colleges around the country.

Let me begin by citing the Hadith of the Beloved Prophet S.A.W, where he said: “Whoever’s main concern becomes the Hereafter, Allah will make things well for him, and will make richness to dwell in his heart. And the world will come to him despite its unwillingness. And whoever’s main concern becomes this world, Allah will scatter his affairs and will place poverty between his eyes; also, the world will not come to him, except what was written for him.”

You cannot run and surpass your shadow, and you are constantly walking with your preordainment. Let me narrate a brief story of my previous jobs. When I finished my diploma, I worked with two companies. The first one was immediately after the completion of my diploma.

I met with someone and told him that I had finished my diploma. Therefore, if there was any job opportunity, I was available. He answered that he would contact me whenever he got a vacancy. Meanwhile,  I continued with my menial job (tailoring). After some months, I got a call from my friend that, that man asked him to ask me if I have experience of a particular job “he mentioned one working experience, whether I can or not?” I quickly responded, indeed! In sum, I successfully conducted an interview and got the job.

Moreover, a few months later, I got a call from my teacher. He informed me that his friend asked him to find someone who has a certificate in Agricultural science. I replied that I have diplomas in Animal production technology, a certificate in Laboratory science technology, and basic computer skills. He asked me to submit my credentials like that. Some months went by again. Then, I got a call that I should come for an interview. I finally secured the job. I left the present one and switched to the new one. Eventually, I quit the job and went back to school for my HND.

Similarly, after I finished my HND before going for NYSC, a friend of mine (whom we did SIWES together in primary health care) called me that his business partner was looking for an experienced laboratory technician at his newly established laboratory. I got this one, too, after an interview and so on.

Money helps make someone happy but does not mean that money will provide one with all kinds of happiness. Unfortunately, misunderstanding how life is makes many people think that money solves all problems. That is why people desperately toil to earn money to feed themselves and their families legitimately or illegitimately, forgetting the transient of worldly possessions.

Consider my story above; two main things helped me secure the jobs. First is my employability. In other words, my experience before coming across the opportunities. Second, my relationship or connection. Therefore, I am saying that acquiring skills makes a person employable.

Buying or selling job offers will not solve your problem forever. So let us free ourselves from corruption and prepare a better life for our posterity.

Musa Idris Panshekara wrote from Kano via pmusaidris@gmail.com.

By A.F. Sesay

It’s difficult to fathom how a region of such numbers, resources, and beautiful cultural heritage/pedigree came to become such a scourge on national conscience in a space of forty years. What happened to the passion of the Sardauna, the native pride and dignity of your people, the welfarism that always motivated your brothers from the south or neighbouring countries to stay beyond those initial dates of return or even decide to be permanent residents?

If you were to canvas for answers,  different answers would come from different sources based on intellectual and cultural biases or leanings. That’s also the case with all matters of human endeavour. So, no shaking! And the more complex the issue the more divergent opinions and perspectives.

But in the case of recent events in northern Nigeria, with an emphasis on the Muslim hemisphere, there is something striking in the people’s unwanton love for the material side of life, contrary to the previous cultural ethos. Equally matched by this is the fear for death which naturally comes with more cravings for the transient pleasures of life. What happened to the studious efforts of the serious and sincere ulama (religious scholars)?

Let me hazard a few guesses. While some unscrupulous elements in both local and international media make it look like Arewa is Africa’s human abattoir where people are killed for the fun of it, non-northerners who have lived there before this litany of crises have fond memories of a people who are peaceful to a fault. This peace, which was largely a product of a contented heart, died with the pressure to keep up with the Joneses. And in that pressure was buried the deep fear of death. Before this, you knew people who were courageous, who stood for what they believed in no matter whose axe was gored and no matter the deadly consequence.

Crimes like kidnapping and banditry couldn’t reign supreme because criminals weren’t feared. We all remembered the courageous youths of Azare who risked their lives to confront armed bandits in 2012. Instances abound when community leaders (mai unguwas) coordinated young people to serve and defend the community within the ambit of the law. So, what happened?

How did we come to this period of life when people in a region of over 100 million people stood by and watched unknown faces and small groups of scums hack away their future and that of their children, one local government at a time?

Maybe we should look at the trends and evolution of materialism. Look at a few nations whose socio-economic progress have been meteoric in the last 50 years and look at northern Nigeria, you will see a striking lack of priority as well as a  lack of agency and urgency. And what underlies all this is the base love for material things among the elite which oozed out into the wider society rubbed off on the talakawa (proletariat) Suddenly, suddenly every Bala wants this: a luxurious house with a tall gate, a fleet of cars, tall, fair and wide-eyed women and other fine, yet fleeting things of life. Yet, neither the education nor the economy was tailored to sustain this onward rush to glitters: new trends come up annually in the design of houses, new brands of cars, new phones and so on.

Whoever is going to keep up with that has to have unrestricted access to money either through commerce or a job that pays an incredibly high salary. In the absence of this is another companion to money: stealing and everything extortion. Under this falls the myriads of problems we see today: unbridled corruption in governance, banditry, kidnapping and the rest in this nefarious family of ills.

Let’s say we flipped the conversation and say the fault is not in the people, but their enemies. It is logical to think that a region this steeped in tradition, with such great potential in numbers and unexplored resources is bound to be a target of both visible and invisible enemies, what is not logical though is when this becomes an excuse for inertia, baseless polemics, cancel culture and hurling of insults left right and centre. About enemies, who hasn’t had one? About insults, we haven’t seen one- I mean- we haven’t had an economy built solely on the foundation of the people’s ability to hurl insults at each other.

While there are certainly smithereens of enmity and animosity smothered on all of the region’s myriads of problems (a common case is a bias in data and reportage on and about the north, but let’s not digress), there is certainly a need for deep introspection. What happened? Are these manifestations of problems long foretold? Could something be wrong with the very approach to problem-solving? Or is this a huge cultural gap nobody is willing to talk about? Does it have something to do with population or outright carelessness on the part of the ruling class?

The north, in its long political sojourn as part of a nation in which it was severely disadvantaged in education, yet extremely well-positioned in Politics and Administration, has had its fair share of wins and losses. What remains to be seen is the ingenious manipulation of pluses and minuses. The world is watching and history’s pen is looming over you!

All told, the current state of affairs should remind you of the popular hadith of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). And if this is a behavioural problem like it was rightly observed, then it’s going to require a behavioural solution: moderate the wanton love for material things and be courageous enough to confront death when your dignity and that of the generations unborn are at stake. 

A.F. Sesay sent this via amarasesay.amir@gmail.com.

By Aisar Fagge

A picture of a 13-year-old Hausa boy, Musa Sani, who designed a flyover prototype trended social media platforms with many comments about the magic hand and brain of the young child.

Upon seeing that, there was news that Ronchess Global Resources Plc offered the child a scholarship and an automatic offer at their construction company. The Daily Reality followed up the story and spoke with the CEO and founder of the company, Jackson Ukuevo, who said:

“Yes, it is true. I have spoken to one Ali Usman from Borno, who said he’ll speak to the guy’s parents. We gonna move him to Abuja. I’m gonna put him in one of the best schools in Abuja. A private school. When he’s done from there, I’m gonna ensure that he gets to the United States of America (USA) to further his education to build on his horizon. He’ll then come back and do something real for us.

Because what I saw, I don’t think it is something anyone should leave behind. For that child [at his age] to design that [flyover prototype] and actually build on that, then if we give him the opportunity and put him in the right position, with all the accessories and resources he needs, and also be with the mindset of the same people with the same creativity he has, we’re sure he’s gonna do something wonderful.”

When he was asked whether he has spoken to the child’s parents, he said:

“I haven’t spoken to his parents. I just spoke with someone (Usman Ali) who said he’ll speak to his parents and he’s gonna try to speak with the emir of village or something, then once that is done upon the parents’ acceptance, we will move the child and his parents to Abuja. There I’m gonna ensure that the child gets one of the best schools in Abuja. Then, upon all this, hopefully, he completes his education and everything, we make sure he furthers it outside the country. We believe he’ll come back and give back to the society something great.”

The Daily Reality then asked the CEO when he’s planning to go to Maiduguri and meet the child’s parents to show seriousness in his company’s promise he closed with: “We are just waiting for his parents’ acceptance of our offer. Once they accept it, we’re ready to go down there and meet them. If they accept it today, tomorrow we’ll be there and finalize everything.”

The Daily Reality also spoke with the first person who posted the picture of Musa Sani with his flyover prototype on her Facebook page, Yagana Bukar, on whether she knows Ali Usman, who was given the assignment to speak to the parents of the boy.

She said, “Yes, I know him. Right now, he’s in Abuja, but he’s coming back tomorrow. When I posted the picture of the boy, I tagged him and the governor of Borno State, Prof. Babagana Umar Zulum, hoping someone will help the child to study engineering abroad. Now Allah has answered my prayer.”

By Aisha Ahamd Jalingo

I barely have many memories of him beyond his signature, white clothes and red cap because I was a child when he passed away, but my husband insisted that I write a tribute for him today, being 11 years since his demise. All I know is Baba was an inspirational personality which means different things to different people. A father with a great sense of humour, a mentor that gave his all irrespective of differences in ideology or creed, and a unionist who fought to protect all till his last breath.

Everyone who knows him at Bayero University will always say how he jokes around with everyone. Whether you were his students, who I heard would rush to M block for his lectures because of how educative and entertaining his classes were, or his colleagues who always ran to him to seek support, morally or otherwise. He treated everyone equally with respect.

During his lecture, he would have the theatre filled with some students not because they registered for the course but only to listen to him speak.  Baba Jalingo was very religious. It is his norm to go to the BUK Central mosque for Magrib prayer and wait till after Ishaa before returning home. A pillar in the mosque is called ‘fillar Jalingo,’ meaning Jalino’s pillar. He would sit there from Magrib till Ishaa. I once saw someone write on Twitter that no one even dares sit in that spot, as when he arrives, he jokingly asks the person to get up. 

His kindness knows no bounds. One memory of his that keeps coming to mind is that whenever we travel home to Jalingo, we normally stop at Gombe to stretch our legs, pray, and eat at a particular filling station. Baba would sit with the people there and chat. He would buy what they are selling, most of which we don’t need. I heard an incident when Baba and our Mom were returning to Kano. Unfortunately, they had a flat tire in a village, Durbunde, just after Gwaram. He met a man who helped them fix the tire. Since then, he always stops at the village to see him, till date that man still visits our family. He named his son after Baba Jalingo when he passed away, named his daughter after mother and recently named another daughter after me.

The same thing happens around Dakatsalle just before Kano. When returning from Kaduna or Abuja, Baba would stop and sit with all those selling chickens, vegetables, fish and whatnot. He usually tells them, “kaima kawo abin da kake sayarwa” (“you too bring what you sell”). He will come home with so many things. 

When it comes to supporting family, I have never seen anyone who supports his family like Baba Jalingo. I know he helped my mother up to the rank of Professor, which she earned shortly after his death.  I heard he often travelled with her to Usman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, when pursuing her PhD. He was her biggest cheerleader through it all.

I can remember the last incident when she was the HOD of the Economics Department, Bayero University, Kano. A conference was organised in the department, and he was then the vice-chancellor of Taraba state University. I remember him coming to Kano to attend the conference, and he was among the first to arrive, sitting in front with his signature white clothes and red cap.

He often travelled back from Taraba State for the termly visits to our school. Baba never got tired. I remember his last visit passionately during our Qur’anic graduation ceremony. In the picture, I can never forget smiling when he was called to give a speech all over the place. I could not remember what the speech was all about. All I know was he talked for a while, returned to his seat at the front row, walked back on the stage, and took a group picture with all of us when we were called for our recitation.

It was after his death we realised how much he had been sponsoring and taking care of other families without the knowledge of anyone. That is the kind of man Baba was. He made all of my siblings, and I feel special, that every one of us considers ourselves to be his favourite, though I firmly believe it is me because he calls me “kingin Baba.”

Late Prof. Ahmadu Usman Jalingo, fondly called “Baba Jalingo” by everyone close to him, was a UK-trained political scientist, a veteran, a renowned scholar, a great man who played it all around. A veteran unionist and academic per excellence who raised through the rank and became one of the earliest political science professors in Northern Nigeria. Baba was the secretary to the State Government old Gongola and Vice-Chancellor of Taraba State University, a position he held until his death.

Baba was very close to Malam Aminu Kano. He was, precisely, Malam’s personal secretary. I can remember loads of Malam Aminu Kano’s personal diaries we found in his estate when he passed, which my Mom officially wrote and handed them over to the centre for Democratic Research, Mambayya house. In the tribute written by one of his students, Onoja, I read that Baba Jalingo confided in him that the one thing Malam Aminu Kano had in excess was socks. He says he never wore the same socks twice.

He was among the 49 men committee under the able leadership of Chief Rotimi Williams, Alhaji Idris Gidado, secretary, established in September 1975. This committee was the brains behind the creations of ‘CLUB NINETEEN MOVEMENT’ and the ‘NATIONAL MOVEMENT’. Malam Aminu Kano and many northern representatives created the ‘’National movement in Lagos. They later changed its face to become a political party named the National Party of Nigeria (NPN). The National Movement launched recently was originated from the work of this committee. 

Baba Jalingo was a man of the people, loved and respected by all. He passed away peacefully in his sleep on March 1, 2011. March 1, 2022, marked 11 years since his death, but his memories are still very much fresh in our hearts. We will forever live in his image and will in sha Allah continue with his legacy. 

Rest on Baba, till we meet in Jannah….where we will be reunited forever in sha Allah

Aisha Ahamd Jalingo (Mrs) sent this article via jalingoaysha@gmail.com.

By Abubakar Suleiman

“Why waste your money to study your family tree? Just go into politics, and your opponents will do it for you free.” – Mark Twain

The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, has become the subject of public scrutiny lately, after members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) deserted university classrooms for a one-month warning strike to drive home their demands.

To compound Mallam Adamu Adamu’s ordeal, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) President, Asefon Sunday Dayo, threw decency, good English grammar and coherence to the dogs and confronted him for the way forward on these incessant strikes. The Minister, within his rights, could not stomach zingers from the NANS President; hence, he peacefully walked out.

What the Nigerian academics and critics need to crucify Adamu any day is to comb his past articles on the sorry state of education in the country and the possible solutions he highlighted in addressing the anomaly, notwithstanding the practicability or sustainability of the solutions. Blessed with astonishing writing prowess, Adamu doesn’t pull punches whenever he decides to take the government of the day to the cleaners on education.

Mallam Adamu is not alone in the blowback of past written or spoken words. Isa Ali Pantami, Reno Omokri and Reuben Abati are good examples of how venturing into public service can force critics to chew some of their words or elegant analyses raw. They get to see, first hand, the depth of the rot in the system they seek to reform. Moreover, thanks to their fantastic writings, their readers or fans expect them to do wonders, including unrealistic expectations actions.

History is replete with critics who ended up being the worst versions of the people or policies they obsessively criticised. So also, the grave is filled up with critics whose know-it-all dispositions and elegant solutions never get tested.

Criticism is sweet and romantic. However, it is undeniably required to hold elected or appointed leaders accountable as humanly possible. It helps improve a system and checks leaders’ excesses, thereby insulating them from being despots or demagogues.

However, criticism should be accompanied by good knowledge or grasp of the subject matter, moderation, realistic approaches, and viable solutions. The quick urge or attitude of some critics pontificating on, or criticising, everything under the sun without critical thinking is among the reasons many critics presumed as messiahs ended up as disasters.

Nothing humbles most critics like public service. So, they either choose sheer populism or face the realities or challenges that come with purposeful leadership amidst competing demands, meagre resources, criticism and tough decisions, which are often unpopular. With the latter, they get more kicks than halfpence.

As it is true with an onlooker who sees most of the game, their opinions are birthed from the outside on the premise of poor exposure and little information, which invariably make them see complex and daunting challenges as straightforward.

Interestingly, opinions could change due to contexts or circumstances. People learn from exposure, old age or new knowledge. We may find ourselves opposing some views we hold so dear today in the future when we are eventually called to serve the people. Therefore, if you are called to serve the people, don’t hesitate to oblige. However, be ready to get your fair share of kicks and past opinions unearthed.

Abubakar Suleiman writes from Kaduna and can be reached via abusuleiman06@yahoo.com.

By Isma’il Alkasim

Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today— Malcolm X

Unequivocally, the educational sector requires critical and colossal funding from various stakeholders, whether civil society or a particular individual, not only the government. The intervention programs, which are basically designed to address the critical challenges bedevilling the sector, contribute a greater percentage to the educational sector’s wellbeing. 

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization has recommended that 20—25% of the country’s budget be allocated to the educational sector to ensure the sector’s effectiveness. 

Notwithstanding, Benjamin Franklin, asserted that an investment in education pays the best interest. This has been a rejoinder to the elites who had no clue what would guide them through, thereby emanating a cohesive plan towards the educational reform.

A concert series of strikes, declared by the Academic Staff Union of the Universities (ASUU), leave a deep scar in the memory of the students whose interest and ambitions were solely dependent upon their studies. And this is a serious threat to the nation where insecurity and poverty threaten the lives of its citizens. The ASUU and the government should understand the gravity of the tension this strike may accelerate.

Furthermore, the last industrial action in 2020 through 2021, which ASUU has spent almost a year striking, led to a gigantic imbroglio to university education. Meanwhile, nearly every university could not fulfil its academic calendar in a duly prescribed time. This strike, all despite a whole year spent due to the outbreak of the Covid—19 pandemic, but both parties, the government and ASUU, had failed to get rid of the strike before the lift of lockdown. This indicates how lackadaisical the government is to prevent the ASUU from continuing an indefinite, elongated, and pervasive strike.

Are we really serious?

Probably, not; we are not serious at all. If the government and ASUU can’t sit and share the same cup of tea to find the lasting solution to this horrendously, repulsive and awful strike, as citizens of conscience can’t hold both parties accountable? Why can’t to come out en mass and protest against the lackadaisical of both parties? It worked in an EndSARS protest, so we need to borrow and use the same language as a last resort.

The worst part of this ASUU—FG drama is that those at the centre of the controversy do not value the Nigerias’ education system. Perhaps, their sons and daughters aren’t the victims of the elongated strikes since they spent or are spending their educational journey abroad; the great countries that have done everything possible to redefine and standardise their educational sectors.

The United Kingdom, for example, had spent at least 900 solid years revitalising and meliorating their educational sector before it came to fruition and privatised the industry. This indicated that the suggestions and recommendations made to the government of Lugards’ amalgamation in 1914 to take a bold step towards commercialising the sector would not yield any positive result. Instead, it’s a giant stride to uplift, breed and enhance corruption in the educational sector. More so, privatising the sector is unbecoming. The reason is that the educational sector is a system that is a babysitter that has weaned and breastfed every individual in the Nigerias’ domain.

How should it be?

On a lighter note, we should embrace ourselves collectively. As a whole entity, we shouldn’t lie to ourselves; there’s a limit to what government can achieve within its capacity about the economic status. This deserves no clarification to any discerning individual, but that shouldn’t be an excuse to circumvent and leave our educational sector (not only universities) in the stage of mediocre. We must value the system to make progress.

The education we are supposed to give our utmost priority is the basic education as the foundation ground and necessary stage for all citizens. But, until we resolve the odds vexing the UBE, the thirst to get rid of our universities’ problems can’t be quenched. So, at this juncture, the clamour to refine and redefine the universities system in Nigeria by ASUU is graceless and unbecoming.

May Nigeria prosper.

Isma’il Alkasim writes from Garki, Jigawa State. He can be reached via kogasgarki@gmail.com.

By Sumayyah Auwal Ishaq

The process for the extradition of the suspended Commander of the Police Intelligence Response Team, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Abba Kyari, to the United States got underway on Thursday, March 22, 2022.

The Federal Government of Nigeria, through the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), has filed an application before the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja for Kyari’s extradition. The AGF said the application followed a request by the Diplomatic Representative of the U.S. Embassy in Abuja.

Recall that a jury filed an indictment against Kyari with the approval of the U.S. District Court and demanded Kyari stand trial for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money laundering and identity theft perpetrated by Abass Ramon, aka Hushpuppi and four others.

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Ahmadu Bello University branch has advised the institution to withdraw the degree it awarded Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai.

This was contained in a statement jointly signed by the Chairman and Secretary of ABU-ASUU, Haruna M. Jibril and Hussain A. Abdullahi, released to the public on Wednesday, March 2, 2022.

The statement is an aftermath of a congress meeting held by the union at the Abdullahi Smith Lecture Theatre in ABU.

The union said it discussed the attempt of Elrufai to illegally and forcefully take over lands belonging to ABU despite a court order restraining him from doing so.

According to the Union, El-Rufai’s actions are in contravention of the requirement of character by the institution before awarding a degree. Therefore it becomes necessary to ask for his degree certificate to be withdrawn.

The statement partly reads: “The ASUU- ABU branch at its congress meeting of March 2, 2022, deliberated on the matter of the attempt by Nasiru El-Rufai, the Executive Governor of Kaduna State, to illegally and forcefully in utter disregard of an order by a competent court of law, take over lands belonging to the Ahmadu Bello University, an institution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and a historic and premier University.”

According to the Union, as contained in the statement, the Congress, therefore, resolved to seek the withdrawal of the El-Rufai degree certificate.

By Aminu Adamu Naganye

Established as the centre for juvenile delinquents in 1958 and later converted to Special Education School in 1977, it is Kano’s premier and most important school for Persons with Special Needs from Kano and beyond. In part one of this special report, the Daily Reality reporter, Aminu Adamu Naganye presents the general condition of school from classes, furniture to hostels. And how the shortage of learning materials hampers the learning process of the students.

PICTURE 1

Approaching of classrooms in the junior secondary school section of Kano Special Education School, Tudun Maliki, The Daily Reality observed how a teacher was trying hard to obviously settle a fight between two hearing-impaired students. “Judging and settling fights are a daily routine here,” said a smiling teacher who likened their work to that of judges.

Special Education School, Tudun Maliki, Kumbotso Local Government Area of Kano state is a combined boarding school with multiple sections or parts serving the educational needs of persons with special needs (disability) from different parts of Nigeria.

Established prior to Nigeria’s independence in 1958 as a centre for keeping juvenile delinquents, it was later transformed into a school for hearing and visually impaired pupils in 1977. At the inception, the special school “started with four (4) visually impaired students and seven (7) teachers.”

“There are currently about 1500 pupils and students comprising both male and female from different parts of Nigeria,” said our tour guide who teaches at the secondary section of the school. “It has a primary section, junior secondary and senior secondary sections” he added.

“Special Education School Tudun Maliki is a sort of a unity school because its students aren’t only from Kano state. It is a kind of unity school because we have students from all the neighbouring states such as Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, and Bauchi. We have students also from Yobe, Taraba, Abuja and even Lagos we have students from there… there are students from different places in this school” narrated a teacher while briefing an NGO team that distributed items to the students.

Although the school director and teachers do not entertain journalists in the school for apparent fear of possible backlash from the authorities who often deny or trivialise the problem, the school accepts NGOs who support the school with learning and teaching materials in addition to supporting the pupils with detergent and laundry stuff. TDR relied on an NGO’s visit to file this report.

It can be recalled that recently the school became a public sensation, especially on social media when some visitors posted dilapidated conditions of the students’ toilets which prompted the Kumbotso Local Government Chairman to come to their rescue by renovating one toilet and constructing another in the school; another philanthropist also built a toilet for the students as shown by a teacher. 

Although there are other special education schools at the primary level for the persons with special needs in Kano, this particular school is actually unique as it allows them to culminate into senior secondary school. “There are primary school sections of this type established by some metropolitan LGAs in Kano. So after their primary education there, they come here to continue to secondary school” said a teacher.

Dilapidated classrooms and hostels, in need of renovation

Considering the fact that there are few special education schools of this type that impart knowledge to persons with special needs in the state, it is expected that this very school should have standard classrooms and hostels for this unique breed of students. However, classrooms at the school were anything but befitting for learning and teaching. “It is not conducive for learning and teaching the state of the classrooms, especially the primary section,” said a teacher, “there are no seats in the classes, and the students sit on a bare floor. The windows and even the doors to the classes are all broken” narrated the teacher as he ushered our reporter into primary six class.

PICTURE 2

The sign language/gesture with which they greeted our reporter tells the fertile minds, hearts and brains eager to learn and expand frontiers of knowledge not just in the hearing impaired community but also in the larger society. With their complete white uniforms, the hearing-impaired pupils look dirty and untidy for obviously having constant contact with bare floor due to the absence of desks and chairs in the class. What is startling is the apparent joyous and smiling faces of these innocent souls full of hopes and dreams as they welcome us into their supposedly learning vicinity. In most of the primary school classes, there was no single chair or desk for the students’ learning convenience. In a class where few desks were available, they were broken and not convenient for sitting, writing and learning. “That is how all of us manage the situation. The teachers and pupils are doing their best in this environment,” said one teacher.

Passing through the students’ hostel blocks, the story is the same. The sorry condition of the dormitory is visible from any angle. Most of the windows are broken and the doors are not any better. “It is terrible when it is very cold because the windows as you can see are broken,” said the teacher in whose company our reporter moved around the school. Similarly, it is terrifying the condition of both the hostels and the beds for the students; the beds are grossly inadequate, leaving many students to sleep on the floor with mattresses alone due to a shortage of bunk. The teacher guide said they pity the students, especially in cold weather but there is nothing they could do personally to help the situation.

Despite our reporter’s inability to get into the hostels but peeping through the broken windows reveals their dilapidated conditions ranging from shattered windows, scratched and cracked walls to badly spoiled ceilings.

A teacher whose identity could not be revealed appealed thus “Government owns the school and it’s doing its best. But I still call on the government to do more. I also call on NGOs and affluent people to come and help, to support government efforts. There are a lot of things to do here. A lot of problems to solve especially in classrooms because you can’t learn in an unconducive learning environment. As you have seen in the primary section of the school, they sit and learn on a bare floor. There are no seats. The windows are broken”  

“We need additional hostels. There is a shortage of even beds. Some students are sleeping on the bare floor of course with either a mattress or mat. We have a lot of students but the accommodation isn’t enough. We need both bunks and a hostel block. Especially during cold weather. If you check the hostel, they need to be renovated. But as the saying goes a ‘single tree cannot make a forest.’ “We hope people and organisations should come and support the government,” he added.

Dearth of teaching and learning materials

The peculiarity of the kind of students of the Special Education School requires unique learning instruments to impart knowledge to them successfully. Although it was relatively easier to teach hearing-impaired students using sign language, a blackboard and chalk-like conventional students, it is more challenging to teach visually impaired students how to write and subsequently read their writings. A teacher corroborated this when he said, “Honestly, we don’t have the material for teaching and learning on the ground…if you take the hearing impaired students there is a little problem because they use learning materials like everyone such as chalk, blackboard, textbook etc. Even though we don’t have textbooks but their parents buy for them.” 

But for the visually impaired students, he explained that “That is where we have a very big problem. Previously, NGOs used to bring learning materials. Now they don’t bring such things. And their (visually impaired) learning materials are expensive, especially if you want to enrol them in primary school you have to buy what is called “slate and stylus” which currently cost around N10, 000. And this slate and stylus is a must if you want your child to study because it is the first learning instrument. So some parents because they cannot afford to buy such material, prefer to keep their children at home and refuse to enrol them in school.”  The teacher however acknowledges that the government supplies exercise books for the students.

TDI came to the rescue, donates hundreds of textbooks

As part of its effort to support and empower adolescents, a Kano-based NGO called Teens Development Initiative (TDI) made a commitment to addressing some of the challenges in the school, especially on learning materials.

Fadhila Nuraddeen Muhammad, Founder and Executive Director, of TDI, told the Daily Reality that they are currently working with the school authority to establish a library for the school. She said they discovered that science-based subjects were not taught in the school because of the absence of instructional materials but the students were eager to learn, hence their commitment to support with the necessary materials, especially textbooks.

She said TDI donated about one thousand books to the school that will be put to the library to make it functional.

“We have already delivered the books to the school. We are planning to raise some funds for the shelves in the library,” she noted.

Our students don’t starve, they have nutritious meals

Despite the challenges confronting the school, the students are not left to starve as one of the visually impaired students revealed. The student, Abdullahi Adamu, confirmed that: “They give us food in the morning, in the afternoon and at night.” In the same vein, a teacher in the school told our reporter that “They get good food here. Some of them cannot get what they get here in their parents’ houses. They are served three meals, three good meals a day. The government provide their breakfast, lunch and dinner. Some of us as their teachers cannot afford what they are being served in our houses.” Another teacher explained further: “In their breakfast, for instance, they are served bread, tea and egg. In the afternoon, they are given food with chicken. It is not everyone that can afford that nowadays. Every Wednesday, they eat a fish meal. In the past, after every two weeks, cows used to be slaughtered. They hardly eat food without meat.”

To be continued in part (II)

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari.

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved $8.5m dollars for the evacuation of Nigerians stranded in Ukraine.

This was disclosed by the Minister of State for Foreign affairs, Zubairu Dada on Wednesday, March 2 shortly after the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osibanjo at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Addressing State House correspondents after the meeting, he said the president approved $8.5 million for the evacuation exercise.

” The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs wrote a memo to the president seeking funding to enable us conduct this exercise. The memo was to the tune of $8.5 million which Mr President has graciously approved. That Provision entails an arrangement to evacuate no less than 5,000 Nigerians” he said.

According to him, the pickup flights would be headed to four countries, which are : Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania.