NGO assists 56 UTME, SSCE candidates in Ibadan

A non-governmental organisation, Academic Excellence Initiative (AEI), has provided financial support for 56 secondary school students to register for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and National Examination Council (NECO) examination.

The awards, including 50 UTME and six NECO free forms, were presented to the awardees last Friday during the third annual scholarship awards ceremony of the organisation held at the Alumni Centre, University of Ibadan.

Speaking at the ceremony, a University of Ibadan don and chairman of the Nigeria Institution of Environmental Engineers (NIEE), Oyo State, Dr W.O. Ajagbe, counselled the awardees on how to apply their personal abilities to their interests to attain their educational goals.

Dr Ajagbe charged Nigerian youths to prioritise education as he emphasised that “the educated steer the affairs of humanity while the ignorant are the downtrodden in every society.”

He further urged them to be in “the republic of excellence” but not in “the Zaazoo Republic where morality and excellence are at stake.”

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The don described self-confidence, hard work and correct subject combination as recipes for gaining admission to higher institutions of learning in the country which he said is now highly competitive.

He urged parents and guardians not to force their wished professional paths or course of studies on their children as that would deter them from giving their best, adding that students should be counselled on the best courses of study based on their academic abilities, societal needs and O’ level results.

The overall best awardee for UTME for this year’s AEI scholarship, Kaosarat Owolabi, expressed gratitude to AEI for the opportunity and promised to be dedicated to her studies so as to make the organisation and her parents proud of her in the future.

The project coordinator of AEI in Oyo State, Mr Idris Openiyi, disclosed that out of the 372 candidates registered for the selection tests, Kaosarat emerged the overall best for UTME, while David Obafenwa emerged the overall best for SSCE.

Addressing the awardees, a lecturer at the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro and an official of AEI, Ibadan, Mr Jamiu Badru, promised that the organisation would constantly get in touch with the awardees and monitor them to ensure they secure admission for their desired courses and higher institutions of learning and even beyond.