Read the impact of Dr. Sam Egwu on education in Ebonyi State. As a former governor, he introduced free and compulsory education, retained top local graduates as lecturers, and awarded scholarships for advanced studies in the UK.
His initiatives also included tuition-free science education and significant financial support for state institutions.
Discover how Dr. Egwu’s policies and reforms helped build a strong educational foundation for Ebonyi State.
A Profile of Sen. Dr Sam Egwu With Nwoba Chika Nwoba
Up till 2004, teachers in primary and secondary schools in Ebonyi State were from other states of the South East of Nigeria including the civil service spaces. Majority of the lecturers in the state’s higher institutions were as well from other states. It was so because the state lacked the number of human resources needed to run the different sectors of the state at the time. Dr Sam Egwu being a lecturer who was almost a Professor before becoming Commissioner for Education during the military administration of the state and subsequently governor in 1999 saw it as an affront and designed mechanisms to tackle the broad deficiency.
First, he declared free and compulsory education at the basic level in the state. Second, he ordered retention of indigenous 1st class graduates of Ebonyi State University and others as lecturers. Third, he awarded postgraduate scholarships to indigenous graduands who performed well upon graduation. The scholarships were in the United Kingdom. It was from there that the state started having a good number of resourceful lecturers professionals in different fields and administrators. The selection process was devoid of political gratification. It was not a stakeholders affair as it’s today. Forth, he declared tuition-free studentship to indigenous science students of the Ebonyi State College of Education, Ikwo. As a student of any science – related course in the school, it’s tuition-free for you so long as you are from Ebonyi. This was to source science teachers for the primary and secondary schools going forward. The programme ran up till the 2007 that he left office.
Fifth, he granted a meaningful subvention regime to the state-owned higher institutions. This aided the running of the schools seamlessly. Prof. Fidelis Ogah from Ikwo being a seasoned university administrator, took EBSU to the pinnacle of excellence at the time as the Vice Chancellor of the university. The school became one of the best public schools in Nigeria. Six, Dr Egwu subsidized fees for indigenous students of the university. This made it possible for parents and guardians to be able to enroll their wards.
Before he handed over power in 2007, he had succeeded in creating human resources for the state capable of sustaining her going forward. As Minister of Education, he drafted a blueprint that provided an opportunity for states without federal universities to have theirs. He was removed as Minister along the line. Goodluck Jonathan dusted the proposal by Dr Egwu which led to the creation of federal universities in states without one including Ebonyi. That gave birth to the Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ikwo.
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It was Egwu’s government that created the Ebonyi State College of Education, Ikwo on an existing college of Agric environment the state inherited from the old Anambra State. He created Ebonyi State University, too. This is to mention but a few in the area of education when he was governor from 1999-2007. Umuebe village of Ezzangbo, indeed, gave the Salt of the Nation a material in Sen. Dr Sam Egwu!
