Govt Not Doing Enough On Education, Says J. K. Randle

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Govt Not Doing Enough On Education, Says J. K. Randle

Chairman of J.K. Randle Professional Services, Bashorun J.K. Randle, has bemoaned the sorry state of education in the country, saying that government is not doing enough to provide quality education to Nigerians.

The former president, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAM), made this observation at the Government Secondary School, Owerri  (GSSO), Old Boys Association, Lagos Branch, 2023 End-of-Year Banquet Award Night and Fundraiser in Lagos.

According to the renowned Chartered Accountant, education despite being key to human capital for the development of any nation, is not given the right attention it needs to grow.

Lamenting that education in Nigeria, for so long, has been left to decline, Randle said the sector deserves more than what it presently receives in the budget, so that lost grounds could be covered to return the sector on the right track.

The Federal Government, in its 2024 Budget Appropriation, Defence and Security received the highest sectoral allocation of N3.25 trillion (12 per cent of the 27.5 trillion budget), while education got 2.18 trillion (7.9 per cent).

He said: “Education in Nigeria has suffered a huge setback and the tragedy is that a lot of money we should be spending on education we are spending on other things and the pro-catalyst for development (human capital) is education, and this has been proven over and over in so many countries. But it is not getting the right attention.

“At the beginning, we were doing a lot for education – free education, scholarships bursaries. But all of that have stopped. Right now, the schools are in a sorry state. You would be shocked if you go round the country; you will see that the facilities have rotten away, and buildings have remained uncompleted.”

Randle said the rise in insecurity in Nigeria was because people have lost hope in the country, with the belief that they have been made very poor due to poor governance.