Allocate 25% of annual budget to education, Aare Hassan urges President Tinubu

A legal practitioner, Aare Oba Oladotun Hassan has urged the Nigerian President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu to come up with a national Policy plan on Education to raise the bar in budgetary allocation to the sector to 25% of the annual budget in line with UNESCO standards.

A breakdown of the immediate past administration’s annual budgetary allocations between 2016 to 2023 showed that N369.6 billion or 7.9% was allocated in 2016; N550.5 billion or 7.4% in 2017; N605.8 % in 2018 and N620.5 billion or 7.05% of the annual budgets were approved for the education sector in his first term spanning 2016 to 2019
In his second term, President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration allocated N671.07 billion or 6.7% in 2020; N742.5 billion or 5.68% in 2021; N1.18 trillion or 7.2% in 2022 and N1.79 trillion or 8.8% in 2023 of the annual budget for the period under review.

However, the Statistics showed that out of total sum of N27.5 trillion proposed by the Tinubu led Government for 2024, N2.18 trillion or 7.9% is for education sector in 2024 fiscal year.

Aare Hassan who spoke as one of the discussants on Thursday at the annual lecture and Book Launch in honour of Prof Emeritus Benedicta Egbo with the theme Reclaiming Nigeria’s Future: Strategic Framework for Achieving Transformative Change held in Abuja
He explained that Tinubu has come up with renewed hope agenda in which education is part of his vision and the buck stops at his desk.

“We want to use this opportunity to let him know that he needs to come up with a national policy plan on Education by increasing the budgetary allocation to education to 25% and ensure the curriculum in the education system is reviewed to bring about proper administration whereby there will be no more ASUU strike, no more NASU or SANU strikes.
“We believe that the best way we can achieve this is through restructuring. The constitution of the country is long overdue, talking about constitutional review we need a new People’s constitution whereby issues about education will have a life of its own.
He said by so dojng, there will be proper planning, issue of security would be properly outlined and all the other issues bedevilling the country, will all be reviewed.
“We have gotten documents in the past; we have had a confab before, we have a reviewed constitution so there is no need spending another billion in reviewing the constitution.
“What we need the President to do is to come up with a Presidential fiat by ensuring he writes the National Assembly on the need to reconstruct the constitution based on the existing proposals as encapsulated in the Confab reports of the previous administration regarding the new policy and SDG goals and proper documents.
He said even the 1963 constitution can be merged with the 1999 constitution to better our lots adding that we can have the right constitution that is implementable with patriotic zeal

He acknowledged the erudite and scholarly vision of a great Amazon of moral education and a truly defined democracy in Professor Benedicta Egbo.
“What is education? It is the bedrock and the foundation that makes a country. What defined us as developing nation is the level and extent of education and the level of implementation and how realistic we are to ourselves. “We have never attained what it takes to be considered as a developing nation. We are just crawling because when you are considered as a developing nation there is some progressive attainment.
“What percentage of out National budget is even set aside for education in our budget, it is not up to 10%. Education will kill and nail insecurity in the country to put an end to joblessness.
“The United Nations raised the benchmark for education to be 25% of yearly budget but how much are we doing in that regard? Even the little we have you will hear that Piton has swallowed the money.
“An average student that goes into the University will do 8years for a four years course because ASUU will go on strike because no one is accountable, no one is transparent or ready to tell the truth.

He said everything is wrong with the constitution of the country, We cannot predicate a country as big as Nigeria which we are all passionate about on the men in uniform.
“That is the constitution that emanated from the military, so it is still their decree and how best are we prepared to put an end to that if we are truly prepared for the true education of the country, we need to do more.
“We need to also go in the line of moral training which is lacking, in Prinary and secondary school levels no one is teaching morals. Moral instruction as a subject is no longer in our curriculum.
“We need to review our curriculum. Most of what we learnt, we need AI. Not every lawyer has the grasp of the constitution, they don’t know the details because we are not being taught the laws of our country.
“If we don’t know our laws, none will imbibe morals. So these are critical areas that will define and restructure our education. “Education is an inherent part of any nation. It is not about a structure or an edifice but it is part and parcel of our growth. “What made Awolowo a great man is because he saw light in education because he was there when we were reffered to as a country that never existed under colonialism but we thrived more because we had educated individuals who were in position of authority.
“Today, because of the constitution that is military infested, the benchmark is primary and secondary schools. You don’t even need to pass, all you need is just to show a prove, that can never make a country.

He said the best Nigeria can do is to encourage the Emeritus Professor Benedicta Egbo, “I see a new Dora Akunyili, because you have started a journey telling Nigerians to be patriotic and that was the same message Dora sold till her last breadth.
“When we Lack patriotism we will end up in corruption.. we need to think Nigeria, breathe Nigeria.
“Our mindsets are corrupt, not just financial corruption, moral corruption is the height of them all because if you go to the church or Mosque no morals, you go to the family life, the dress code is horrible, no one to speak out, none is ready, nomore moral programs on our TV. The music you hear is that which runs down the system.
“The ministries and government agencies who are supposed to regulate these have all been compromised. They are not concerned. We need a nation that belongs to all of us.
He urged professir Egbo to still have to think again to contest for presidency 2027 as she attempted in 2023.
“We encourage you. We want to tell you that at any given opportunity, your voice needs to be heared.
“Those close to the President there is a need to have an advisory council to look into the education sector of this country. If they have to nominate, you are best deserving to be in that corridor to advise on the best way out, you have the passion and you have developed the Canadian vision.
“You want to give back because you did not learn education from Canada, it is from this soil and you are passionate to give back.”