‘S/West govs failed to sustain Awo’s education policy’

A first-class chief in Ogun State, Oba Ebenezer Akintunde Akinyemi, on Monday, said failure of the Southwest governors to sustain the free education policy of the late sage, Obafemi Awolowo, is responsible for joblessness, youth restiveness and alarming rate of the out-of-school children in the region. His views were contained in an open letter titled […]

A first-class chief in Ogun State, Oba Ebenezer Akintunde Akinyemi, on Monday, said failure of the Southwest governors to sustain the free education policy of the late sage, Obafemi Awolowo, is responsible for joblessness, youth restiveness and alarming rate of the out-of-school children in the region.

His views were contained in an open letter titled “An Open Letter To All Governors In The South West of Nigeria On The Agitation Of The Nigerian Youths On EndSARS.” A copy of the letter was made available to our correspondent in Abeokuta.

Akinyemi, who is the Eselu of Iselu, Yewa North Local Government Area of the state, noted that Awolowo invested heavily in education which the present crop of leaders in the state, benefitted from.

He said youths in the Southwest have now become a security threat to the society over lack of qualitative education, skills and jobs to keep them off the streets.

The Oba noted that the protest and subsequent looting were as a result of leadership failure to cater to the people.

“During the days of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, there was a free education programme which most of the current politicians benefitted from. Where is the free education programme in the Southwest now which has the semblance of that of Chief Obafemi Awolowo? It is almost gone”, he said.