PENGASSAN provides education materials, classrooms for pupils in Abuja

Tukuruwa community in Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory was agog on Tuesday following the formal commissioning of the reconstructed LEA Primary School — the only existing primary school in the community — by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).

President of PENGASSAN, Comrade Festus Osifo who led the National Executive Council (NEC) members of the union to Kwali for the commissioning of the school and donation of educational materials on Tuesday, noted that amongst the several interventions undertaken by the foundation since it’s unveiling about 24 months ago, the Tukuruwa project was the most significant.

He said: We felt that as a body, this was one of the projects we think was quite auspicious, and would go straight to the heart of this community and also better the lives of these children because these are future senators, these are future presidents, these are future governors and these are future local government chairmen and chair ladies.

“This is just our little way of saying thank you to a country that has given us support to be whom we are today. We strongly believe that empowering people and touching lives is one of the ways to please God because we cannot say anything to God Almighty in heaven or to Almighty Allah but by reaching out to your neighbors, the people around you, to these peoples that are standing here today.

“It brings that level of happiness, it brings that level of joy and we wish to also inform us in the community that PENGASSAN Foundation will not depart from this community very soon. We will continuously see the areas we could intervene and we will do our best to the best of our ability.”

While noting government may not be able to meet the needs of the citizenry all alone, the Comrade President stated that PENGASSAN was happy for any opportunity to touch the lives of children, give back to the society and communities.

Filled with joy and delight, Etsu Kwali, His Royal Highness, Luka Ayedoo Nizassan III, said the project has ignited hope in the community.

While he recounted the suffering of the pupils and parents because of the horrible state of the school before the trade union came to their rescue. He went on to assured that he will personally monitor the donated educational materials to ensure they were distributed to the pupils, and also ensure the classrooms are well utilized.

“Our hearts are so filled with joy I think the bounds cannot be explained. What this project has been able to do is to sprout hope that people can be rich in education as long as you are able to profile your problems and put them out there for attention and that was what happened with PENGASSAN.

“The moment we submitted this as an entry for consideration it was agreed unanimously because of the condition of the school at the moment and they decided to swing into action. The renovation of this school is not up to a month it’s between three weeks and for them to have given us their words and resonated with those words we are so happy.”