Gov Zulum Meets President Tinubu, Confident Of FG Retaining Army University In Borno

Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State has expressed confidence that  President Bola Ahmed Tinubu would  reconsider the decision of his administration to  merge the Army University, Biu with the Nigeria Defence Academy, as recommended in the Steven Oronsaye Report being considered by the Federal Government of Nigeria 

Zulum who met with President Tinubu at the villa in Abuja over the weekend , told state house media that the president had agreed with the Borno State Government to reconsider the planned merger of the Army University with NDA

The governor commending  the Federal Government’s determination to implement the Oronsaye Report, as a way of cutting down cost of governance and ensuring efficiency, however stressed the need to exclude the university from the planned merger, saying doing so will worsen the worrisome situation of huge number of out of school children in the state, particularly in Southern Borno who are still suffering from the effect of attacks of Boko Haram Insurgent

He revealed that the president had directed him to write on the request to retain the university or convert it to a conventional university  

"We pleaded that Army University should be converted to conventional university under the Federal Ministry of Education, rather than merging it with Nigeria Defence Academy, the president has directed me to write him on the issue for reconsideration", the governor stated 

According to Zulum, there are large number of children in the Southern Borno who are willing to further their education in the university, collapsing the university into NDA will deny them such opportunity, thereby increasing the out of school children not only at the primary and secondary school level but at the tertiary education level

The governor added that retaining the university in Biu would reduce the huge number of out of school children, which has always be the target of both the State and Federal Governments