HELP: Our school has only two teachers!

Odeeh Francis Ogbole is the National Youth President of Ejor Akpa. He studied Agricultural Economic & Extension  from the Federal University of Agriculture Makurdi, Benue State. Ogbole became the president of the Youth of Ejor on the 29th of December 2015 and since then, he has taken radical steps to ensure the development of Ejor. Weeks after he held the annual national conference of the youths in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, on the 27th of May 2017, the soft-spoken young man granted Akweya.com this interview calling for concerted efforts to provide education in Ejor. Excerpts:

One of the classrooms with a collapsed wall.

How has your experience been as the President?                       

                      

Odeeh Francis Ogbole: My experience as the president has been very challenging. We didn't have any structure on the ground before now so that makes it very challenging as we just started everything from zero level.                       

What were your plans before coming and how have the plans changed now?                       

Ogbole: The plan was to bring all the youth of Ejor together so that we can work collectively and develop our dear community. So far we are making progress despite all the challenges.  My team and I, we are working so hard and we have been doing lots of sensitisation and conscientization. We are very positive about the future.

                       

During the recent national conference of Ejor Youth, many issues came up, but you have taken up the issue of the primary school immediately. Why are you passionate about the school?                     

Ogbole: Yes, I am so passionate about the school because that is where we can get it right from. Education is the key to every development. If our younger generation cannot be educated then we as a community have failed as we will be building a community that will be full of crime and other social vices. Because of ignorance and high levels of illiteracy of the land. As someone who knows o the value and importance of education then I should be more concerned about the state of the school.

The second block has no roof.

You recently visited the school to take stock. How does the school look?

Odeeh Francis Ogbole

Ogbole: In fact, it is a pity. The school is in shambles. It's nothing to write about. The roof of one of the buildings had been blown away by the wind, while the second building the wall has fallen. The floor is untiled and dust covers everywhere. No chalkboard, no desk, and benches for the pupils to sit. There are no tables and chairs for the teacher to sit either.  

The worst is the lack of teachers as there was only one permanent teacher and one N-Power teacher. What is a school if it has no teachers? It is double jeopardy for Ejor school because we don't have the buildings and the teachers are only two in number.                   

So what are you planning to do about these serious issues?                     
 

I hope to seek help from NGOs, individuals, local government, state and even federal government. I am also appealing to all sons and daughters of Ejor to come to help in this situation, as well as all well meaning Akweya at large.                   

Finally, what are your other plans?                       

My other plans are to ensure that all the youths of Akweya come together stronger than before. The National President of Adim and I have been in contact trying to bring all the National President of all the other communities in Akweya together so that we can work out modalities of how we can strengthen the AYPF again.