‘Indigenous languages compulsory in Rivers schools’

From Shola O’Neil, Port Harcourt

Teaching of indigenous languages will now be compulsory in schools in Rivers State, Commissioner for Education Prof. Kaniye Ebeku has said.

Prof. Ebeku, at a news conference on Tuesday, said the state had made improvement in education in the last five years.

He said: “The government is making plans to implement its law on the teaching of indigenous languages in government schools. This important aspect of education was ignored by previous administrations, but Governor Nyesom Wike recognises that indigenous languages, being part of our culture, should not die.”

The commissioner noted that Wike had made huge improvements in education, saying he built a befitting building for the State University Medical School, which runs programmes fully accredited by the National University Commission (NUC).

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He added: “To consolidate on this, the Braithwaite Memorial Hospital has been upgraded and equipped to a standard teaching hospital.

‘’Within the RSU Campus, several departmental buildings have been completed and others are ongoing.

‘’You will also find similar infrastructure in other tertiary institutions.

“At basic and secondary schools, the governor’s efforts are clearly manifest in complete renovation/remodelling of the Government Girls’ Secondary Schools in Rumuokwuta; GSS Ogu; BMGS Bori; NGS Abonnema; Government Craft Centre Port Harcourt; GSS Abua; Ubima and Okaki, among others.”