Nigeria’s Failure To Reward Merit Fuels Decline In Academic Excellence – Iyabo Obasanjo

Former senator representing Ogun Central, Iyabo Obasanjo, has said many young Nigerians do not strive for academic excellence because the country fails to adequately reward merit and hard work.

Obasanjo, a public health expert and daughter of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, made the remarks while speaking on The Morayo Show, where she stressed the need for leaders to create opportunities for young people and recognise excellence in order to encourage better performance.

According to her, many students who appear to be underperforming academically are often discouraged by a system that offers little incentive for hard work and achievement.

“One of the students I taught at UNAB is now at the University of Texas and is a professor himself. Some of those people that are behaving badly and you think can’t do well in school, they’re not doing well because it offers no reward. You have to reward excellence to get more of it.

“As leaders, we need to create more opportunities for young people especially. Where the world is now, talent will go where it’s needed,” she said.

Obasanjo, who holds a doctorate degree in epidemiology and currently teaches public health in the United States, said her experience in both Nigeria and abroad has shown that talented young people thrive when given the right opportunities and support.

She recalled teaching at a Nigerian university using the same lecture materials she had developed overseas, suggesting that the challenge facing many Nigerian students is not a lack of ability but the environment in which they operate.

Reflecting on her upbringing as the first child of former President Obasanjo, she said her parents placed greater emphasis on personal achievement and leadership by example than on assigning her responsibility for raising her younger siblings.

The former lawmaker also spoke about her political journey, noting that after serving as senator for Ogun Central, she considered contesting for the governorship of Ogun State on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

She, however, said she later left the party after becoming dissatisfied with its internal processes, alleging that commitments made to her and her supporters during a consensus arrangement were not fulfilled.

Obasanjo maintained that rewarding excellence, strengthening institutions and creating opportunities for young people remain critical to Nigeria’s development, warning that talented individuals will continue to seek opportunities elsewhere if their contributions are not recognised at home.