Speeches

Memorial Drama Presentation Of Loyola Jesuit College, Abuja

Dec 6, 2009 - Let me start this address with a confession. I received your invitation letter to me for this occasion with mixed emotions. It brought back to me, very forcefully, the profound memories of that Black Saturday on December 10, 2005 when 60 brilliant and promising future leaders of this country from this noble college unwittingly paid a price for the monumental inefficiency that held sway over the affairs of some institutions of our beloved nation at a time. As a State, our hearts have been with the parents, guardians and this school as we continue to share the sense of loss created by the departure of our little ‘angels’ and also cherish their fond memories at a time like this. We continue to pray that the Almighty will continue to give all of us, especially the parents, the strength and fortitude to cope with the void that their departure has created in our lives and homes.

Again that incident and events that unfolded thereafter also reminded me that we still have a lot to do for our children’s education, their care, training and upbringing as well in giving them a secure future. By ‘we’, I mean public and private institutions, parents and guardians and all relevant stakeholders in building a country in which justice, equity, due process and rule of law reigns, a country in which people’s rights and duties and obligations are respected, shared and practised, a country where we place the greater interest and good of the others above our own personal and selfish interests. This is why we have decided in Lagos to so work, so lead, and so govern that our children can have a brighter rewarding future.

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I am therefore pleased to be here today to participate in this third, (3rd) Memorial Day Drama presentation organized to commemorate these children, whom I sincerely believe are still living amongst us in our hearts or else we would have elected to be elsewhere today.

Our distinguished parents, ladies and gentlemen, I believe I don’t need to remind us that these children are the next generation; they are the next parents, leaders and workers who will take over the running of the affairs of this country from the current set of leaders. This is a function of the natural order of things which we will only ignore or disrupt to our peril. Because if we think we can fail in our divine responsibility to bring up children with the proper values and show them the way they must go to be good citizens, reputable men and women and thoroughbred professionals and technocrats, we condemn ourselves to living the remainder of our earthly lives in retirement full of regrets, aches and pains. This is not a prayer I would wish even a fool.

Thankfully, there is evidence that the current generation of leaders in various aspects of life are beginning to take the welfare of our children seriously. As an example, the Child Right Act, which seeks to commit governments to implementing children- friendly policies and programmes is currently making the rounds in many Houses of Assembly which are either debating or have passed it; the Lagos State Government has since passed it. The wars against child labour, human trafficking and other abuses against our children are being fought from various fronts. There are also some notable children and youth foundations and programmes that seek to harness the talents of children and imbue them with virtues of cooperation, character enhancement and solidarity, too numerous to mention. And the Federal and State governments have restated their commitment to the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals as it affects the education and health of the child.

And you, the management of Loyola Jesuit College which has devoted itself to training “leaders of competence, conscience and compassionate commitment”, to quote you in your invitation letter to me, is one of the best symbols of that great promise to make our children the true leaders of tomorrow. Any properly educated man and woman must have had the foundation at the primary and secondary school levels. That is the foundation that can hold the superstructure of tertiary education given anywhere, in Nigerian, Europe, America or Asia and even the entire professional life of the students after graduation.

Let me therefore commend the Management of Loyola Jesuit College for undertaking this noble but tasking assignment of training children in the best tradition of service to God and humanity of one of the founding fathers of the Catholic Church, Reverend Ignatius Loyola. Your memorial drama presentation today testifies to this commitment. For, we can never forget that those children had hopes and dreams and aspirations for which they were preparing to fulfill in life and contribute their quota to human civilization. Your chosen play for this occasion, Ola Rotimi’s Hopes of the Living Dead, is indeed a befitting, though a poignant reminder of the past event for which we are gathered here. This annual Memorial Day celebration will also serve to remind our leaders of the debt we owe our children and our duties to them.

For us in the Lagos State, we have the welfare of our children and the youths in our thoughts and programmes. There is no policy and programme that our children are left out, whether it is education, traffic, environment and health. In matters of education, we operate a free education in our public schools; give free textbooks; pay WAEC examination fees and give adequate bursary and scholarships to those in tertiary institutions within and outside the State. We also give free health for mother and child up to post natal period and free health care for children in all our Hospitals.

Because we know that information and knowledge is the best and effective way to instill a strong civic commitment in children and through them their parents, we decided to inculcate the habit of learning and obeying traffic laws in our children by launching traffic games in our schools under the Traffic Advocacy Programme. It was the same decision that informed our policy to form Climate Change Clubs and revive and equip Voluntary Uniformed Organizations such as Boys Scout, Girls Guide and Red Cross.

To bridge the gap between the acquisition of certificates and having a trade for those who have graduated from lower and higher institutions but have remained unemployed, we established Skills Acquisition Centers in the five divisions of the state, namely, Ikorodu, Badagry, Ikeja, Lagos and Epe. As we speak, over 5,000 graduands have acquired skills in computer engineering, fashion design, hair dressing, welding, vulcanizing, masonry and photography from these centers. Our performance has been greatly enhanced by the assistance from some stakeholders in the private sector who have identified with and invested in our Adopt-A- School programme whereby interested public organizations and individuals donate equipment and facilities to any public schools of their choice.

Before I conclude, let me remind all of us that the training of children should be the collective efforts of the government, the private sector, organizations and well-meaning individuals, not necessarily because of the financial implications involved but because of the need to show concern for the welfare and interests of the development and growth of the next set of trustees of our common destiny as a people and nation. Nations grow and develop through the massive investment in the human capital of its citizens, particularly at their formative and vibrant ages when they are bubbling with excitement and robust talents that need to be harnessed and channeled to good purpose.

On this note, I wish to urge all of us present here today to show interest in the upbringing of our children and be ready to give part of our time, talents and treasures towards preparing the emerging generation of men and women committed to uphold the values of honesty, diligence and respect for constituted authorities. That is the only way this country can indeed be reckoned among the great nations of the world.

Once again, I thank the Loyola Jesuit College management and community for inviting me to this occasion. It was an honour I will cherish for a long time to come. May the memories of our little angels on whose behalf we are here and the lessons from this drama continue to inspire all of us to remember that we are all living on a borrowed time. And may we continue to give our best to help give our children hope and courage to face the future.

I thank you all for listening and God bless you.

BABATUNDE RAJI FASHOLA, SAN
GOVERNOR OF LAGOS STATE