Nigeria is wobbling-Obasanjo.

FORMER President, Chief
Olusegun
Obasanjo,
yesterday,
expressed grave
concern over the
current state of
insecurity in the
country and the
continued slow
march of the
nation to desired
development
destinations.
He also called for
increased public
private
partnership in the
management of
education to
tackle the “four
serious problems
that still persist
in thwarting” the
nation’s efforts
with
consequences for
Nigeria’s ability to
meet the
Millennium
Development
Goals, MDGs.
Obasanjo who
delivered the
41st convocation
lecture of the
University of
Nigeria, UNN, at
Nsukka on the
theme
“Education and
national
development”
said the country
could not
continue to
wobble as she is
currently doing.
Speaking on the
challenges of the
future for the
nation, Obasanjo
said: “This
country cannot
continue to
wobble along like
a stalked and
wounded lion,
walking to its
death. We have
immense
resources—
there were 37.2
billion barrels of
proven oil
reserves in
Nigeria as of
2011 ranking the
country as the
largest producer
of oil in Africa
and the 11th
largest in the
world, yet, there
is no respite in
the search for
sustainable
development of
the nation.”
Obasanjo also
alluded to the
nation’s growing
population which
is put at 170
million as at
today, saying:
“This will be an
asset only if we
start now to
work seriously
and assiduously
on how this large
population will be
the quality,
united and
purposeful
workforce
associated with
such countries as
the US and South
Korea.”
He explained that
the United
Nations’
projection that
Nigeria will be the
fourth largest
nation in
population by the
turn of the next
century places a
big burden on the
leaders and
people of Nigeria
who must work
for corresponding
growth in
education sector
by increasing
access to, quality
and purpose of
education.
Obasanjo
identified the
four problems
confronting the
nation’s
education sector
as inadequate
access to
education, poor
quality, lack of
clarity on purpose
of education and
relevance of
current education
to Nigeria’s
culture,
orientation, core
values and the
future.
The former
military and
civilian president
called for public
private
partnership to
tackle the
challenges of
education in
Nigeria.
He submitted
that “PPP in
Nigerian
education today
must go beyond
mortar and
bricks, and
extend to shared
services,
entrepreneurial
development and
reform ideas.”
Chief Obasanjo
also
recommended
that Nigeria must
“institutionalise
systematic
performance
reviews and
assessment of
all key areas of
our education
system”, noting
that “the annual
lamentations
about poor
performance in
WAEC and NECO
examinations will
remain empty
and futile until
we have reward
and punishment
systems to
encourage
improvements
among students,
teachers,
administrators,
schools and
communities.”