Education: You’ll Produce More Bandits, Terrorists, Drug Abusers If… – Obasanjo Tells Tinubu

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has issued a stark warning about the potential rise in drug abusers, terrorists, bandits, and other social misfits in Nigeria, attributed to the alarming number of out-of-school children, which stands at over 20 million.

In a statement released by his media assistant, Kehinde Akinyemi, on Sunday, Obasanjo emphasized the critical need for a robust socio-economic development plan spanning 25 years to address these challenges.

CityNews reports that Obasanjo advocated for an agenda that prioritizes education, technology, and skills acquisition, stressing that it should gain the consensus of all political factions and be legally enshrined by both the National and State Assemblies.

The former president outlined that compulsory education up to the secondary level is essential for every Nigerian child, and that an immediate five-year plan should be implemented to bring every child into the school system.

He called for a ten-year goal to completely eradicate illiteracy in the country.

Obasanjo said, “ There should be no Nigerian without being in school compulsorily for eleven years – secondary education level.

“ Five years must be set out to ensure that every Nigerian child that is not in school is in school and no one is left out of popular education. Adult education should be embarked upon to give every Nigerian basic education equivalent to six years of formal education.

“ We should give ourselves ten years to rid Nigeria of illiteracy. No matter what we do, if we do not find a way of educating, giving skills, and empowerment, over 20 million Nigerian children that are out of school today will end up being rich recruitment centers for drug addicts, Boko Haram, bandits, and other social misfits.”

Beyond education, Obasanjo highlighted the necessity of ensuring food and nutrition security through agribusiness, universal energy access, bolstered industrialization and manufacturing, and advancements in science, technology, and artificial intelligence.