By Our Reporter
ABUJA (PRECISE POST) – Former presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has criticised the government over the continued absence of schoolchildren in parts of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) following a teachers’ strike, warning that Nigeria’s education crisis threatens the country’s future.
Obi, in a statement released on his X handle, said he was shocked to discover that several school-age children in Sheda and Sheda Galadima, in Kwali Area Council of the FCT, had been out of school for more than two weeks because of the industrial action.
The former Anambra State governor disclosed this on Thursday while marking the International Day of Rural Women, during a visit to the communities.
He said he was surprised to see a large number of school-age children around market areas on a school day and became concerned after speaking with them and learning that the teachers’ strike had kept them at home.
Obi lamented that the situation was unfolding at a time when Nigeria was already grappling with a huge out-of-school children crisis, estimated at more than 18 million.
He criticised the government’s priorities, arguing that political activities and declarations of economic achievements should not overshadow the urgent need to address challenges confronting the education sector.
“So, while we are busy inaugurating campaign councils with pomp and pageantry and declaring economic miracles, our young children of school age are loitering in the streets because of a strike, in a nation with already over 18 million out-of-school children,” he said.
Obi maintained that education remained a critical instrument for development and nation-building, stressing that countries making significant progress were those that prioritised education, healthcare and poverty reduction.
According to him, Nigeria’s rising poverty is partly a consequence of inadequate investment in critical sectors, particularly education.
He called on the relevant authorities to urgently resolve the dispute and ensure that pupils in public schools across the FCT return to their classrooms.
The Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate also pledged that investment in education and healthcare, alongside efforts to lift citizens out of poverty, would be central priorities under his leadership.
“It is time to put our children and the future of our country back at the centre of governance and government decisions,” Obi said.
