In a bid to curb the spread of bullying and cultism amongst secondary schools in Nigeria, Ikeja Junior High School Interact Club organised a one day seminar to create awareness and educate students on the negativity involved in such inhumane act and its implications on their academic performance.

The event which was tagged “Effects of bullying and Cultism on students academic performance” took place on Wednesday, February 9, 2022 at the Ikeja Junior High School Hall, Ikeja and had in attendance, Special guests and representatives from Rotary Club, Ikeja, who were the sole sponsor of the event, Lagos State Scout Council, Nigerian Girl Guides Association, NGO’s like Heart Rose Care Foundation, Lagos, Management Staff, Teachers and Students of the school, amongst others.

In her opening remarks, The School Principal and Chief Accounting Officer of Ikeja Junior High School, Oyeleye I.O emphasised the reoccuring cases of Bullying and Cultism in our society today and the ripple effects it has on the school system, both socially and academically.

The need for such an event is required to help sensitise the students to be better informed and enlightened, she added.

The well packaged seminar, had three speakers, Youth Advocate Chairman, NYCN Lagos, Lekan Biliaminu-Oba, A representative, Heartrose Care Foundation, Lagos, Atere Mojisola Iyabode, and the Youth Coordinator, Nigerian Girl Guides Association, Lagos, Adebayo Ayomide who at their different time slots explained the various aspects of bullying/Cultism, its origin, operations and stressed the importance of voicing out to higher authorities when such act is noticed within and around the school premises.

The role of Parents, teachers and other external bodies in handling reported or observed cases of bullying and Cultism were also emphasised from the various presentations.

Interact club members of Ikeja junior high school, thrilled the audience with special songs and a drama presentation, depicting the act of Cultism and Bullying in schools and the role expected of a teacher in handling such a case.

The School management, distinguished guests and Students shared with our correspondent the importance of such an event at this time, especially with the increasing cases of bullying in the country and the impact this will make in the heart of the attendees.

Female beneficiaries of EKOEXCEL, an initiative to transform public education using innovative technology, have hailed the power of science and affirmed their interests in becoming scientists.

The students spoke as the world marks the 2022 International Day of Women and Girls in Science on Thursday.

The International Day of Women and Girls in Science, was first marked in 2015, This year’s themed is ‘Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: Water Unites Us’ in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6 of ensuring access to water and sanitation for all.

Speaking about their love for science, the pupils all hailed its transformational impacts and benefits to humanity.

Righteousness Amarachi, a nine-year-old basic 4 pupil of Methodist Primary School, Ikorodu said, “I am a lover of science because I get to learn all I need to know. I would love to be a teacher of science. Science is the best thing human beings have ever come up with. And if it isn’t right, science will fix it.”

Abigail Ajayi, a 10-year-old primary five pupil of the same school said, “I love science because it has brought about advancement in technology in diverse ways. Science is the lifeblood of the future, and I’m proud to be a girl that loves science.”

Also speaking on her preference for science, 11-year-old Sofia Ochapa, primary 5 pupil of Apelehin-SH-LA, disclosed that “I enjoy solving mathematics a lot, it is challenging to me. I like science subjects, particularly basic science because I would like to be a doctor in future to save the lives of poor people.”

Sarah Okpor and Salimat Ibrahim, both pupils of Dairy Farm Nursery and Primary School, Agege, similarly hailed the impacts of science.

Okpor said, “I love science because science is a way of life, and science is life.” In contrast, Ibrahim said, “I love mathematics and calculations because the accountant is the bedrock of a nation.”

The International Day of Women and Girls in Science aims to amplify the critical role women and girls can play in science and technology.

It also promotes equal opportunities as women remain underrepresented among senior scientists in academia and leadership positions in the workplace.

Report showed that they are awarded less research funding than men and are less likely to be promoted. In the private sector, too, women are less present in company leadership and technical roles in tech industries.

The lack of equal opportunities in the workplace is driving women out of research professions.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu launched the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (LASUBEB) EKOEXCEL in 2019 to provide quality education to both the rich and the poor and upskill teachers leveraging technology.

So far, over 18,000 headteachers and teachers have been moved from analogue to digital teaching, using tablets and updated curricula.

Over 14,000 primary school teachers from 1,017 public primary schools have been captured under the scheme.

The University of Lagos has presented the Torch of Unity for this year’s Nigerian University Games Association (NUGA) to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to inform him about the games taking place from March 16-26.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Prof Oluwatoyin Ogundipe presented the torch to the vice president at a brief ceremony on Thursday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Recall that the University of Lagos hosted the sports event for 24 years.

In his remarks at the event, Prof. Osinbajo described sport as “a great unifier,” adding that “it offers us an opportunity to step outside our sometimes contentious divisions to embrace one another in support of our teams or in healthy competition and camaraderie.”

According to him, the virtues of discipline, dedication, and teamwork, which are indispensable to success in every sporting endeavour, are reminders to what it takes to inspire the best in each other and to accomplish great things when people set their minds to the task.

“As our young men and women, from universities across Nigeria, gather in Lagos in March to compete in a range of sporting events, we will once again get a chance to see the abundance of talent that makes Nigeria such a special country indeed.

“For years the Nigerian University Games Association has not only provided a space that allows us to see the value that every part of the country has to offer, it has also provided a platform for the discovery and honing of individual sporting talent, many of whom have gone on to represent Nigeria successfully on the world stage.”

The vice president listed Nigerian athletes who rose from the NUGA Games to become great in different sports in the world.

“The now legendary Nigerian goalkeeper, Vincent Enyeama, who we fondly remember for his role in leading the Super Eagles to victory in the 2013 Nations Cup, and who in his prime was considered one of the best goalkeepers in the world, was once a university athlete and a proud product of NUGA’s talent pipeline.

“Olusoji Fasoba, who won 100 meters gold, running for the Obafemi Awolowo University at NUGA many years ago, eventually went on to anchor Nigeria’s bronze medal win in the 4 x 100 meters relay race at the 2004 Olympic Games and is now the current African record holder for the 100 meters race.

“And of course, there is Olabisi Afolabi, the famed NUGA alumnus from Ilorin, who helped Nigeria to a silver medal in the 4 x 400 meters at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, the highlight of a very successful athletic career which included gold at the World Junior Championships in 1994, silver at the 1999 All-Africa Games, and bronze at the 1995 All-Africa Games.

“And how can we forget Chika Chukwumerije, a shining symbol of excellence and commitment to craft, who inspired by his gold medal-winning performance at the 2002 and 2004 NUGA games, would go on to represent Nigeria at two Olympic finals and earn us our first taekwondo medal at the Olympics.

He noted that Nigeria’s sporting history shows that everywhere the country excelled on the global stage there were athletes whose talents were nurtured in universities and given a competitive boost by NUGA at one time or the other.

Noting the socio-economic value of the NUGA games, Vice President Osinbajo encouraged the athletes who would be competing this year and representing their respective universities to do so proudly and in true sportsmanship.

“This is only a prelude to bigger achievements and greater laurels for yourselves and for Nigeria,” he stated.

He said the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to ensuring that the athletes receive all the support they need at every stage of their careers.

Prof. Osinbajo, an alumnus of the University of Lagos, commended the administration of the University for the work done to facilitate a successful tournament.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Sunday Dare, said that with the commitment to grassroots sports development and talent hunt, the greatest community that could produce talents for the country’s national teams would come from such sports fiesta as the NUGA Games.

He said, “So, we see here a great potential and that’s why as a ministry and as a government we latched on to bringing back the spirit of NUGA,” Dare said, adding “we look forward to the fact that we would find a lot of our talents that will eventually form the team that will go to the Commonwealth Games in July to represent this country.”

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Prof. Ogundipe, who presented the torch to Vice President Osinbajo, said not less than 10, 000 athletes would compete at the games.

Ogundipe said that new dimensions would be brought into this year’s NUGA Games, claiming that the best of the games were the ones held by UNILAG in 1998.

Ogundipe said that the 2022 NUGA Games would be a city sport, where the games would not be localized to the Akoka Campus of the UNILAG.

“We are going to make use of the Teslim Balogun Stadium; we are going to make use of the Rowe Park.

“We want it to be such that the people that are coming from outside Lagos will feel the Lagos atmosphere.

“We are going to bring culture into it; we are going to bring so many other things into it.”

The vice-chancellor said that moving the games out of Akoka would mean that there would be a lot of commercial activities around the Teslim Balogun Stadium that would make the people feel the impulse of the games.

He said the games would also be used to showcase Nigeria’s talents to the world and correct the negative stories about the country.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Calabar chapter, has sensitised students of the institution over the planned strike by the union if the federal government fails to meet their demands.

Chairman of the union, Dr John Edor  in UNICAL, who organised a forum on Thursday in Calabar, sensitised the students on the demands of ASUU and why they intend to embark on strike.
adding that the students were critical in the decision of the union.

According to Edor, ASUU was demanding for the deployment of the University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) in the payment of salaries of lecturers.

He highlighted other demands to include; release of funds for revitalisation of universities, payment of salary arrears, payment of Earned Academic Allowance, and the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement.

Edor noted that the state of infrastructure in public universities had deteriorated to a level where students no longer have accommodation in the hostels due to lack of facilities, adding that lecture halls were no longer enough to meet the students’ population.

After the sensitisation engagement between ASUU and the students, the chairman led the students in a solidarity walk with other members of the union to press for their demands from the federal government.

“The federal government entered into a Memorandum of Action in Dec. 2020 with ASUU to end the prolonged strike action by the union.

“What we are struggling for is the good of the students and the growth of the education sector in the country.

“We have to sensitise the general public and in particular the students of the University of Calabar.

“I am happy that the Nigerian students in UNICAL are joining forces with ASUU to press home their demands for the growth of the education sector,” he said.

Edor urged the federal government to prioritise education in Nigeria by investing massively in the sector, he also charged the staff to rise up to its responsibility especially as it concerns the education sector in Nigeria.

Speaking on behalf of the students, Tryon Bassey, who is the Students Union President, said that the demands by ASUU were genuine and timely, following the dearth of infrastructure in public universities.

“We the students of the University of Calabar have joined forces with ASUU to ensure that their demands are met.

“The federal government should release funds for the revitalisation of universities in Nigeria,” he said.

The National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, has threatened heavy sanctions against the schools or officials caught abetting the fraudulent mobilisation of corps members for national service.

The Scheme said such action led to the blacklisting of some schools guilty of such infractions in the past three years.

NYSC Director-General, Major-General Shuaibu Ibrahim, made this known on Thursday at the opening ceremony of the 2022 Batch ‘A’ Pre-Mobilisation Workshop, in Abuja, with the theme: ‘Enhancing the Credibility of the Mobilisation Process through Effective Data Control’.

In his words,  “As you are all aware, data generated from the Corps Producing Institutions are the raw material processed for the Mobilization exercise.

“This record is supposed to be pure and undiluted, but for selfish motives of some players along the production chain, we have continued to encounter challenges.

“Let me, however, assure the public that we are not letting down our guard as we have continued to evolve and enhance control measures, including those that are technology-driven. These efforts require the buy-in of other relevant stakeholders, including Students Affairs Officers (SAOS).

“Since coming on board in 2019, we have been having meetings with Corps Producing Institutions (CPIs) especially the Student Affairs Officers so that our mobilisation process will not be compromised.

“We also introduced indemnity requiring the head of institutions to endorse whatever data are forwarded to the NYSC, so that; if there is any infraction, the Scheme can apply sanctions. That is what we have been doing. We have blacklisted institutions guilty of such infractions.”

Earlier, the NYSC Director, Corps Mobilisation, Victoria Ango, stated that despite the success story, stakeholders must be mindful of the increasing number of dishonest people abusing the (mobilisation) technology for personal gain.

“This is a challenge that should be taken very seriously because the NYSC is determined not to take further excuses from the CPIs about data being compromised by whatever method or individual directly or indirectly connected with the scheme’ mobilisation process,” she warned.

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Muhammad Musa Bello, in his address, attributed the modest achievements of the FCT Administration to the cooperation and support of critical stakeholders, including the NYSC in various spheres of development such as education, health and community development service.