Delta Awards N500 Million Scholarship To First Class Graduates

Posted by African Examiner Latest Headlines, News, Nigeria 2015 Election Tuesday, March 24th, 2015

From Ignatius Okpara, Asaba – Delta state Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has put smiles on the faces of 100 indigent students of the state, as he presented a total of N500 million for their benefit under the 2013 First Class Graduate Scholarship Scheme of his administration.

While speaking in Asaba, the State capital, at the presentation ceremony, Governor Uduaghan, challenged parents to ensure proper upbringing of their children.

According to him, parents owed it a duty to ensure that their children and wards were properly brought up in order to achieve a better family unit and better organized society.

He added that it was impossible for a cultist to bag a first class degree in the university.

Said the governor: “Please let us build a better society by properly bringing up our children at the family level; generally, a child who is properly brought up is an asset to the society.

“No matter the position you have attained, personal attention to our children is very important and what we call insecurity starts from the home, parents, please we owe it as a duty to the society to take care of our children.”

“The principle behind the scholarship scheme is that the intelligent quotient (IQ) of the child who makes first class is very high and the society should not put an impediment to the child who have such IQ to proceed to have a doctoral degree just because the person lacks the fund.

“This informed our administration’s decision to inaugurate the scholarship scheme.

He added: “You have to be hard working, you have to be disciplined to be able to make a first class degree and to qualify for the scholarship as you know there is no cult member who makes first class because they do not have time to study.

“Before today we have given our scholarship to one hundred and thirty three graduates and today, we are giving scholarship to one hundred persons, and since each student is entitled to five million naira, we are giving out five hundred million naira today.”

Governor Uduaghan appealed to the beneficiaries to be good ambassadors of the State and urged parents to always allow their children to choose what to study.

“In these days and age, parents should allow young people to make their choice; we want to advise that parents should not force children to read a particular course.

“Times have changed, allow the children to make their choices because at the end of the day, they do very well when they follow their passion”, said the Governor.

Uduaghan expressed dismay of the attitude of some Nigerians who did not see anything good from those holding public office, noting that despite the transparent and accountable attitude of members of the Scholarship Board in the State, their actions were still been unduly criticized with members wrongly accused of corruption.

He urged members of the Board not to be deterred in their actions of ensuring that only genuine and qualified persons benefit from the scheme.

Earlier in his remarks, the state Commissioner for Higher Education, Hon. Charles Emetulu represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Mr. Eric Osharode said the scholarship programme has given the beneficiaries the opportunity “of getting a masters and Ph.D degrees in reputable universities.”

He hinted that the State government also had the “Students Special Assistance Scheme (Bursary), Overseas Postgraduate Scholarship Scheme, Financial Assistance to students in the Nigerian Law Schools, Aviation Scholarship scheme, Scholarship for Children of deceased Civil servants and physically Challenged Students.

Emetulu indicated: “there is also the local scholarship scheme (under-graduates, masters and Ph.D) to “cushion the financial hardship our students undergo while in pursuit of their academic ambition.”

Responding on behalf of the beneficiaries, Miss Oke Diateke, expressed appreciation to the State Government for sponsoring the programme, observing that it has challenged Deltans in the universities to strive for academic excellence.