Wale Jagun & Mariam Akinloye
-We are preparing them for the future -Adeboruwa
To emphasise the premium placed on education in Igbogbo Kingdom and in commemoration of the 10th year anniversary celebration of His Royal Majesty, Oba (Barr.) Semiudeen Orimadegun Kasali, the Adeboruwa of Igbogbo, 500 students across various secondary schools, and others that are preparing to write this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) JAMB, WACE and NECO examinations into higher institution, were offered free Computer-Based Test (CBT) training.
The CBT training, which was held on Tuesday, April 7, at the HOMAT CBT Centre in Igbogbo, was organized by the Coronation Planning Committee for the 10th anniversary of the monarch.
The session was a structured introduction to the digital format that now defines one of the most critical examinations in Nigeria’s education system—the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The initiative, themed, ’10 Years of Royal Excellence with Knowledge’, and which served as a pre-coronation anniversary event, saw students from Zumratul Islamiyah Grammar School, Community Secondary School, Bayeku, Lagos State Model Girls College, Agunfoye, Reri Secondary School, Oreta, Oreyo Grammar School, and Civil Service Model College and other candidates from Igbogbo, participating in the training.
Oba Kasali described the initiative as a golden opportunity for participants, while adding that the educational opportunity will not be restricted to the participating candidates.
“This is a golden opportunity for the students that are here as beneficiaries and it’s not going to be limited to the students that are here alone, but for those that are here, this is a golden opportunity to get them prepared for the future.
“The future starts from now that they’re still in school, getting themselves prepared to write the exam to enter the university and as a way of encouraging them and getting them prepared very well so as to make it in their exams,l we decided as a community to put this initiative together.
“This initiative is in view of the approach and the manner that JAMB has put in place to get students to write the examinations. We are in the digital era and knowing that a lot of the students have limited exposure to getting themselves prepared for these exams, his is a golden opportunity.
“About 500 of them are here to take part in this exercise and that is a very large number of students. We are fortunate to have this space within our community to accommodate them”.
The royal father appealed to students to take advantage of the opportunity and get themselves prepared, while also ensuring those with good scores of further support.
“I thank God for this opportunity, and I’m appealing to them to use every opportunity to explore the exposure that they’ve been given, and ensure that they get good grades in their examinations.
“We have equally assured them that on our part, we will play our role to get them admitted if they have good scores. I also convey to them the message of the Chairman of Council of Obas and Chiefs, the Oba of Lagos who sent a representative to this event and they have been urged not to get distracted. They should use every opportunity available to them to prepare for the future and the sky will be the limit for them”, Adeboruwa urged.
Prince Adesegun Ogunlewe, former Head of Service, Lagos State and Chairman, Central Coronation Planning Committee, also speaking, said that the anniversary celebration is a thanksgiving for the Igbogbo community over the success in the last 10 years of Adeboruwa’s reign.
“Well, in life, there’s always reasons for thanksgiving and having spent ten years of a peaceful reign, we all decided that it’s worth celebrating. That is why Kabiyesi put this committee together with lines of activities coming up from 19th of July to the 27th of July.
“This training is coming up as the first activity, because the JAMB examination is very close by and that is why we decided on it. We have a foundation, a legacy project that we want to institute to mark his reign.
“As we go along, we will be coming up with various activities. This one being the first and there is need to train our children to make sure that they come out in flying colors in this year’s examination”.
He emphasized that importance is placed on education programmes, because youths are the future of every society and there is a need to prepare them.
“The future of our community or society are the youths; the upcoming young ones and education is critical for their future. We believe there is nothing we can celebrate without actually carrying the students and youth along, so, that’s the essence of having this empowerment so that they all come out in flying colors in their JAMB exam and from there, go into various careers just as you are journalists”.
The Executive Chairman, Igbogbo/Baiyeku LCDA, Omo’ba Hameed Aroyewun, also emphasised the importance of digital education as a form of empowerment for the youth.
“We are celebrating the 10th coronation anniversary and the program is actually going on at the moment and one of the best ways to start is the digital youth empowerment which kabiyesi has structured for the students and that is why we are here today.
He commended the committee and the kabiyesi for the initiative.
“The Kabiyesi and the committee have chosen a good path to start the coronation anniversary. This is just the beginning of the program and they thought it wise to prepare over 500 students that are going to write JAMB, so as for them to be well prepared because that is the bedrock of their future which I feel will have multiple effects on them and the society at large”, he said.
Also speaking at the event, the Tutor General and the Permanent Secretary of Education District II, Mr Omotayo Sanni, said that the programme aligned with the broader education and youth development goals of the Lagos State Government.
According to him, the initiative supports ongoing efforts of the state government to improve students’ readiness for modern examination, while complementing government investments in education.
“What he is doing is part of youth development by giving them CBT online training towards the JAMB exam. He is preparing our children, our students, to excel well in the exam”, he said.
Sanni, further, emphasised that such efforts should not be left to the government alone.
“The government cannot do it alone. It is a clarion call for well-meaning Nigerians, especially the elites, to join the Lagos State government in educating these students”.
