A member of the Senate from Lagos West Senatorial District, Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola has distributed over 15,000 English and Mathematics textbooks as well as other educational materials to over 10,0000 (ten thousand )students/pupils in his constituency
The distribution is part of efforts to complement Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu at boosting education standard of the state.
Adeola while presenting the educational materials to the students at Vantage Point, Acme Road, Ikeja, described education as the only weapon that could be used to tackle insecurity, restiveness and other social vices among the youths.
The Senator explained that the distribution was aimed at providing necessary textbooks for students to read and come out in flying colour in their examinations
He blamed the disturbing rate of Insecurity in the country on lack of investment in provision of qualitative education.
The first phase of distribution witnessed 10,000 students/pupils from primary schools, 97 selected pupils in Senior secondary schools and 97 selected pupils in Junior Secondary schools while over 200 primary schools in the Lagos West senatorial district were beneficiaries.
Also modern writing boards and school bags were also distributed at the first phase of the scheme.
Senator Adeola promised that the second phase of distribution would be a robust one where those to be benefited would be more than that of the first phase, imploring those yet to benefit, to be patient .
Senator Adeola said he was motivated to give a large quantity of educational materials to public schools because of his background as a product of such schools, saying that he was inspired to give back to those public schools students.
“I was a member representing Alimosho twice sometime ago in the Lagos State House of Assembly when there was a debate on the floor concerning the rewards of the teachers, there is a bill in the state assembly concerning upgrading our teachers to the level of permanent secretary. We debated that the reward of the teachers should not be in heaven but on this earth.
“I am also one of the few advocates that recommended that teachers must be able to aspire to the level of permanent secretary, and if not for these teachers, we cannot be where we are and I cannot be a senator. I will not be able to speak on the floor of the senate, where we must be able to speak constructively.
“We must be convincing enough so that the senate will understand the important of our argument and the change we so desire. All these put together are the efforts of the teachers over us, and I am also thanking God for the teachers and my constituency educators for their efforts, if someone had told me that I would be a Senator I would have asked, how I will achieve that? Behold, I am the one representing Lagos West Senatorial District with special recognition to my teachers,” he said.
Senator Adeola appealed to students to judiciously make use of the material in order to expand their knowledge, saying his action was aimed at preparing students for the future challenges.
He said that he would facilitate the construction of classrooms, staff room and toilet facilities for ten Secondary Schools in the Lagos West, noting that he has donated a bus to Nigeria Union of Teachers in the state to ease their movement.
The Tutor General and Permanent Secretary District Six, Mrs. Oludara Okelola commended the Senator for the kind gesture while assuring that the educational materials would be put to use for the development of educational sector
She added that the textbooks would assist the students in attaining greatness.
She said that gesture would assist students to adequately follow what is being taught in the schools, since they have the necessary textbooks free of charge.
“In Lagos State, education has really gone a long way and we are going higher. Gov. Sanwo-Olu is doing much for education, for this year alone we have had many schools project commissioned.
“We have also seen many abandoned school projects revisited. Aside that, in the last year we have seen the budget for education increased so there is hope for Lagos,” she said.
The Lagos State Chairman, Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Mr Akintoye Hassan, also lauded Adeola for providing for the need of the masses, saying that it is one of the best initiatives I have seen in recent times, what we normally have is tuition free education and not the free education that we enjoyed in the then Western region.
“What free education means is tuition free school, free textbooks, and other educational materials even sometimes free food to encourage the students, infact, the gesture today is a landmark for education in Lagos state,” he said.
Two of the beneficiaries of the textbooks and other educational materials, Islamiyat, Adeyemi, from State Comprehensive Junior College, Agege and Olajide Adediran from Agindingbi Senior Grammar School, Agidingbi thanked Adeola for the support.
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