Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has promised to transfer the responsibility for funding and control of public primary education to local governments, if he is elected as president in the 2019 election
Abubakar also promised that senior secondary and tertiary education, provided through universities, polytechnics, mono-technics, and Colleges of Education (CoEs) will be under the jurisdiction of state governments.
In his manifesto entitled, ‘The Atiku Plan’, the former vice president stated that under the proposed arrangements, the state governments will assume responsibility for all the federal unity schools and Federal Ministry of Education-owned and funded universities, polytechnics, technical colleges, and the colleges of education located in their respective areas.
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This is one of the key points in the policy document released by the PDP standard-bearer, which details a timeline in which he intends to deliver on his campaign promises.
Atiku observes that the current division of responsibility between the state and federal government and a multiplicity of institutions is chaotic and often unclear with overlapping functions.
He promised that the central government shall function as a regulator and shall remain responsible for policy design and harmonisation.
According to the policy statement, Atiku opines that as a regulator, the central government will: Set certifications of quality; define standards for vocational, technical and other education, and monitor compliance with the standards.
He further said the central government will collaborate with the states to prioritise science and technical education, including ICT and related IT- based programmes, in order to support the country’s growth into the 21st Century.
The PDP presidential candidate said, if elected, he will ensure federal government work with the states to carry out far reaching reforms of the system with a view to developing a knowledge-driven economy: that is, one in which the generation and exploitation of knowledge would play a predominant part in the creation of wealth.
Isaac Adeyemi, former vice chancellor, Bells University of Science and Technology Otta, Ogun State, told BusinessDay that the solutions to the socio-political and economic problems in Nigeria lie in quality and sustainable education.
Adeyemi observes that quality and sustainable education has the potential to create employment, improve wellness, and create a well-informed or politically-informed citizenry.
He appealed to Atiku to also declare a state of emergency in the education sector and implement these developmental plans that will address and remedy the problem of access and quality within a specified period, if elected.
Florence Obi, former deputy vice chancellor, University of Calabar, says the plan by Atiku Abubakar to hand over levels of education to the local and state governments, if handled properly, is a move that would increase capital development to aid teaching and learning, adding that the Nigerian education system is not up to the level it should be.
KELECHI EWUZIE
