AU Heads of Govt Meeting: Obaseki, Okonjo-Iweala Mobilise Support for Nigeria’s Anti-corruption Fight

• – Gov hailed for sustaining adult literacy scheme

Abimbola Akosile

The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki and the former Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, have made a strong case for Nigerians to support the effort of President Muhammadu Buhari to stamp out corruption in the country.

In separate interviews on the sidelines of the recent 31st Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of Government of the African Union in Mauritania, with the theme: ‘Winning the Fight against Corruption, A Sustainable Path to Africa’s Transformation,’ Obaseki and the former minister urged Nigerians to back Buhari’s anti-corruption fight for a prosperous Nigeria.

According to Obaseki, “the African continent has not given up hope on us because they see in our leader someone who has the willingness to tackle this problem, which we have as a country, and so I urge Nigerians to understand that it is not a personal battle.”
He emphasised that the fight against corruption “should not be a solo effort. It is about us, as we have one more opportunity as a country to deal with this cancer; this cankerworm that has held us down.”

Okonjo-Iweala said: “We are here at the African Union because the AU is very concerned about corruption on the African continent. Obviously, the body has asked our President to lead the fight against corruption. What that means to me is that in Nigeria we also need to strengthen our effort, work very strongly to make sure that we set an example.

“I think all of us should be involved. I want to repeat that fighting corruption is a task for every Nigerian. I believe that majority of Nigerians are honest, hardworking people who just want to get on with their lives. So we must not allow the majority to be overtaken by the minority of people. We must fight them, we must put in place the systems and these should be done by all of us.”
However, Governor Obaseki enlisted the support of the AU in the state’s industrialisation drive, in a spirited effort to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to the state.

The governor, who was part of Nigeria’s delegation to the 31st Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government AU, stressed the friendly investment climate in the state and the support structures put in place by the state government to promote and protect investments.

The governor brought his experience as an investment banker to bear in sessions on business as well as other discussions relating to doing business in Nigeria at the AU summit.

Meanwhile, adults enrolled in literacy programmes in Edo State have lauded the Obaseki-led administration for sustaining the adult literacy and non-formal education schemes in the state, noting that the programme has afforded hitherto disadvantaged adults opportunity for a second chance at life.

They disclosed this during the monthly monitoring and supervisory routine of the Agency for Adult and Non-Formal Education (AANFE) at Adult Literacy and Skills Acquisition Centres in the state.

An adult student at the Fabiyi Akpata Centre, one of the adult literacy facilities, Mrs. Esosa Imaraibe, applauded the governor for the decision to sustain the programme, noting that she can now read and write after enrolling at the centre.

“We are grateful to the governor for this initiative. This has given people like me hope so that we can get another chance at learning how to read and write and contribute to the development of the society.”

A Director in AANFE, Alhaji L.I Momoh, said the department has a mandate to eradicate illiteracy and expose Edo people to adult education through the state-owned adult literacy centres, which are in every local government area in the state.

“The centres have facilitators, who take the learners through the rudiments of basic education with the aim of ensuring the ability of reading and writing,” he said.

The AANFE came into existence in 1988 with the mandate to eradicate illiteracy from Edo State and is a department in the State’s Ministry of Education.