Everyevery: May our readers know who is Mr. Bulus Shehu?
Bulus Shehu: I’m Bulus Shehu, a public analyst, writer and entrepreneur who hails from Gombe state.
Everyevery: As a graduate in Northern Nigeria, can you identify some of the challenges you encountered during your studies?
Bulus Shehu: The challenges are delay, I had some setbacks. I can say that the environment affected me to some extent. Getting a quality education has been a big problem, though, it depends on one’s financial strength. One of the challenges is not going to school on time. If you take a look, majority of those who had their primary and secondary school here didn’t finish at early age, people don’t get enrolled in school as expected, especially in the villages. Though, I can see some improvements these days.
Everyevery: How can you rate the northern youths in terms of education in comparison to their southern counterparts?
Bulus Shehu: Basically, when it comes to education, the north always trails behind the south. The south has a higher percentage of educated youths than the north.
Everyevery: What do you think causes this imbalanced phenomenon?
Bulus Shehu: Well, up to this moment, some parents are still yet to know the importance of education, the problem starts with the attitude of many parents towards education. When parents fail to give quality education to their children, the children won’t be motivated.
There’s also influence of peers, mostly, when the youths look around and see that their friends are not educated, they won’t be encouraged to take education seriously. Instead, they see their peers engage in taking drugs, they get influenced and start taking drugs. When these youths start taking drugs, they don’t think of education. Also, the rate of poverty in the north has contributed because to get quality education, money has to be spent. When people get enrolled in public schools, they don’t get quality education. Without quality education, one cannot go further.
Everyevery: Does Northern culture contribute to high level of illiteracy in the region?
Bulus Shehu: Yes, it has contributed to some extent. When you embrace the western education, you have to do away with some cultures and beliefs. The influence of culture on western education is not too significant because I’m of the opinion that Africans shouldn’t espouse the western culture to the detriment of their own cultures.
Everyevery: Based on your perception, what are the principal factors that hamper educational development in Northern Nigeria?
Bulus Shehu: First of all, the attitude of northerners towards education. Most people are against the western education from the onset. Lack of investment in the education sector has also contributed. The northern leaders failed to provide quality education, having known that the north is backward in terms of education, the northern leaders should have declared a free and compulsory education to at least, secondary School level.
Another factor is lack of quality education, even in public schools, if there are qualified teachers and educational facilities, there’s no way that quality education won’t be attained.
Everyevery: Nigerian First Lady, Aisha Buhari congratulated her daughter on successful graduation with First Class division from a foreign university this week. And this has generated much controversy on social media. Some people faulting President Buhari’s act of sending his children abroad for studies. What is your view on that?
Bulus Shehu: My view is that, what made the president and other leaders to send their children to school abroad is because they failed to provide quality education. If they know that educational standard of this country is what is obtainable here, they won’t send their children or any other person to foreign schools. I see it as selfishness of mostly Nigerians leaders, they don’t care to provide quality education but prefer to take their children to foreign schools, where as those countries they take their children to don’t send their children to other countries in order to study.
Everyevery: It has become a trend for Nigerian leaders sending their children abroad for studies, what can the common men do to enable their children get quality education?
Bulus Shehu: Well, the common men are left at the mercy of the rich. They don’t have much to do because the government controls everything. However, they should instill discipline into the lives of their children, the common men should take their education more seriously, get private tutors if possible. The common men should take responsibility of their education.
Everyevery: In what ways do you think government and parents can collaborate to address the challenges bedeviling education in northern Nigeria?
Bulus Shehu: The government on its own part should provide quality education by employing qualified teachers, provision of educational facilities like laboratory equipments. Also, there should be better emolument for teachers because this will serve as a motivating factor for teachers to give their best. The government should also take disciplinary action on teachers who don’t take their work seriously.
The government should declare state of emergency on education, not only that, a large part of the budget should be allocated to the education sector. The government should impose free and compulsory education up to at least, secondary School level so that every child in the north and the entire country will get quality education, the government should also set up a monitoring committee that will ensure that every parent enrol their children in school, with punishment for those who fail to do so.
Parents should ensure that they enrol their children in school, provide textbooks and other learning facilities needed.
There should be a partnership between government and the parents in such a way that the government can help those parents who can’t afford textbooks and other learning facilities.
Everyevery: Thanks immensely Mr. Bulus Shehu. We appreciate you for finding time to respond to our questions.
Bulus Shehu: It’s my pleasure.
1 Comment
Hi