The 1991 set of Business Administration graduates of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, has urged the federal government to support public universities in the country.
Speaking at its annual general meeting in Abuja over the weekend, they lamented the poor state of facilities in most public universities, calling for a state of emergency in the education sector.
A member of the association, Professor Bello Sabo, in an interview with LEADERSHIP, advised the government not to relent in its efforts in supporting public universities.
“Looking at the way the population is exploding it is becoming increasingly difficult for the government to continue to watch while education is dwindling.
“So, the government should actually continue to put in its best effort to support these universities because that is the only hope of the common man, once you cannot get your child educated through some of these public universities, a lot of parents will not be able to send their children to private schools.”
He also said the association, as a way of giving back to its alma mater, has been providing some teaching support, printers, working papers, markers and others.
Sabo called on students to embrace mathematics courses as we are in the digital age. “Gone are the days when people were running away from mathematics. Gone is the era of getting scared of any mathematical course, we should advise our children to be open minded and believe that these things can be learnt.”
On her part, a lecturer at Kaduna State University and member of the association, Professor Maryam Abdu said the meeting became necessary given the importance of networking in any alumni association.
According to her, education is the key and there is a need to invest in public universities. “As far as I’m concerned, when it comes to education, there should be a state of emergency.
“The state of infrastructure in universities in Nigeria is very sad. The government has not given it the attention it deserves.
“You can see the dilapidated infrastructure, if there is no internet facility, no light facility how can a university function. Research cannot take place in that kind of environment and they want us to be a world class institution so we have a long way to go,” she added.
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