By Emmanuel Udodinma
Honourable Ebuka Igwe, the lawmaker representing Idemili-South state constituency in the 8th legislature of Anambra State has bemoaned the lack of public schools in Alor, Oba, Akwa-Ukwu, Nnokwa and Awka-Etiti respectively.
Igwe who disclosed this to The Nation Newspaper exclusively in his office at the state assembly complex Awka, was worried that mission and private schools have taken over his constituency in spite of the fact that Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo declared free education yet the five communities he mentioned do not enjoy free education.
Igwe said in order to ameliorate the situation, he has reached out to critical stakeholders in the constituency to see how they can set up public schools in the aforementioned communities, adding that from September this year, there would be several foundation stone laying ceremonies for building of public schools in the affected communities so that poor and indigent children can enjoy free education from nursery to J.S.S 3 as championed by the Soludo administration.
The lawmaker also disclosed that his constituency projects and programmes radiate in Idemili-South Local Government Area as exemplified in the massive renovations at Girls’ Secondary School Awka-Etiti already on the verge of completion.
According to him, Unity Secondary School Nnokwa, Ezike Primary School Nnobi and some other schools in the constituency are currently undergoing remedial works to enable the structures to be ready before September students will resume for a new academic session.
Igwe further disclosed that one of his biggest constituency projects is the Idemili-South Mass Transit Loan Scheme. He explained that the scheme targets to empower about 50 Idemili-South residents and would be flagged off in September this year with 50 shuttle buses and hopes to scale it up to about 100 buses in subsequent years.
He said it is a very capital intensive scheme and he cannot fund it alone which is the remote reason he attracted private partners like Idemili Line Limited and some others to create jobs to enable citizens put food on their tables through the mass transit scheme.
Another laudable constituency project he mentioned was his plan to roll out a health insurance scheme for the elderly and indigent people in Idemili-South coupled with scholarship schemes to students in the constituency.
He said his projects cut-across infrastructure, health, education and a host of others, stressing that the bottom line is to place Idemili-South at the forefront of sustainable development through quality representation in the House of Assembly.
