Wike’s Feats In Education, Unprecedented, Aide Affirms …As Rivers Excels In WAEC Exams

The Rivers State Government has stated that its investments in education development have yielded quality results and improvements in the sector since May 29, 2015.
In a joint press briefing, yesterday, the Rivers State Commissioner for Education, Prof Kaniye Ebeku and Information and Communications Commissioner, Pastor Paulinus Nsirim, noted that Governor Nyesom Wike has been outstanding in reviving the education sector.
They argued that aside renovating and revamping abandoned public schools and tertiary institutions, the Governor Nyesom Wike-led administration has set new record in the revitalization of the education sector in the past four and half years in Rivers State.
In his remarks, the state Commissioner for Education, Prof. Kaniye Ebeku stated that on assuming office in 2015, the governor began a special rehabilitation programme to restore and upgrade abandoned public schools, which among them were: Government Girls’ Secondary School, Rumuokwuta; Government Secondary School, Ogu; Birabi Memorial Grammar School, Bori; Nyemoni Grammar School, Abonnema; Government Crafts Development Centre, Port Harcourt; County High School, Ahoada; Government Secondary School, Abua; Government Secondary School, Ubima; and Government Secondary School, Okaki; among others.
This, he said, was aside the primary schools that were equally rehabilitated and renovated across the 23 local government areas of the state.
For tertiary education sub-sector, Ebeku said that the expansion and completion of the Faculties of Law and School of Medicine in the Rivers State University remains landmark as those projects can speak for themselves.
He pointed out that the recent registration of state indigenes for the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) and West African Examinations Council (WAEC) sets the Wike administration above past administrations as the gesture was first of its kind in the history of the state.
Currently, he disclosed that in a bid to further boost learning of indigenous language, the state government has started making arrangements for the teaching of indigenous languages in schools.
In the same vein, the state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Pastor Paulinus Nsirim, said that so far, the governor’s achievements in education has began to resonate with the milestones recorded by the state in the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) Senior School Certificate Examinations by taking second position in 2017 and fourth in 2016, 2018 and 2019.
Nsirim added that, “these milestones cannot be possible without adequate attention to education because WAEC is the bedrock of education for any person or society.”
Both commissioners explained that, “Governor Nyesom Wike, former Minister of State for Education, came into office as Rivers State governor with a clear vision on the education sector. At his first inauguration on May 29, 2015, he declared that he seeks to provide accessible, quality and affordable education for all in the state. Nearly five years on the seat, he is walking his talk. In this press briefing, we provide you snippets of his giant strides in the education sector.
“Within 100 days in office, he completed and furnished the Faculty of Law of the Rivers State University, which had been abandoned by successive governments since the 1990s.
“He further established a Medical School in the Rivers State University, which had been without medical school since the university was established in 1980. A befitting building was speedily completed and commissioned by him. Moreover, the school has received accreditation from the National Universities commission (NUC) to run several medical programmes. To consolidate on this, the Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital has been upgraded and equipped to a standard teaching hospital.
“Within the Rivers State University Campus, several departmental buildings have been completed and others are still ongoing. You will find similar infrastructural developments in other tertiary institutions of the state”, they stressed.
They pointed out that the annual Rivers results and placement in WAEC show the extent of the success recorded by the Wike administration.
“The state in the last five years has maintained first four in WAEC Ranking for 36 States, including Abuja, which shows sustained growth in the education sector.
“They are as follows: 2016 – 4th; 2017 – 2nd; 2018 – 4th; and 2019 – 4th.
“Shortly, the state government is making arrangements to implement the state law on the teaching of indigenous languages in the state schools. This important aspect of education has been ignored by previous administrations, but Governor Wike recognizes that indigenous language, being part of our culture, should not be allowed to die.”
The commissioners noted that Governor Wike has demonstrated his love for education by sponsoring free JAMB 2019/2020 registration for candidates of Rivers State origin and free WASCE 2020 registration for all candidates in public schools in the state, notwithstanding where they come from.
They stated: “At the basic and secondary school levels, the giant strides of Governor Wike are clearly manifest. The reconstruction and furnishing of primary and junior secondary schools in the state under the auspices of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) are testimonials for everyone to see.
“Besides infrastructural development, Governor Wike has further demonstrated his love for education by sponsoring free JAMB 2019/2020 registration for candidates of Rivers State origin and free WASCE 2020 registration for all candidates in public schools in the state, notwithstanding where they come from.
“Furthermore: 100 medical students of Rivers State origin to enjoy state scholarship at PAMO University of Medical Sciences annually for five years; all basic school teachers across the 23 LGAs in the state were given a one-month capacity building training in August, 2019; Endowment of Education Trust Fund for high-flying pupils in public schools who recently won national laurels”, they listed as some of the extraordinary achievements of the Wike-led government in the state.