NEDC: Gov. Buni urges Commission to renovate 2 Colleges in Yobe
From Sani Gazas Chinade, Damaturu
Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni has called on the North East Development Commission (NEDC) to renovate the Geidam Polytechnic and Gujba College of Agriculture.
Buni made the call when the chairman and members of the newly constituted NEDC governing council paid a courtesy call on him at Government House, Damaturu.
The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Hon. Idi Barde Gubana, noted that the visit gave him the rare opportunity to discuss issues that border on the commission’s mandate in Yobe.
He said the activities of Boko Haram in the College of Agriculture, Science, and Technology in Gujba were the worst humanitarian crisis in recent times, with over 100 students slaughtered and buildings and utility vehicles destroyed by the terrorists.
According to him, the institution has since been relocated to one of the secondary schools in Damaturu, the state capital, while waiting for the intervention of the NEDC.
Gubana also said that the Geidam Polytechnic experienced a similar case, with its buildings and utility vehicles destroyed.
He appealed to the chairman and management of the NEDC to look into the predicament of the two institutions and find a possible solution to enable them meet the requirements of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE).
Gubana commended the NEDC for its massive investment in infrastructural development in the state, such as houses, roads, classrooms, and distribution of palliatives, as well as provision of healthcare facilities to the vulnerable.
He urged the NEDC to ensure full implementation of the master plan to fast-track the development and recovery of the North East sub-region.
Lamenting on the scholarship for Education Endowment Fund (EEF) in the NEDC, Gubana said many young people from Yobe had not benefited from the scheme, as most of them were disfranchised from society due to the financial inability to secure any form of education. He added that most of them were victims of the insurgency.
In his remarks, the chairman of the NEDC governing board, Major Gen. Paul Tarfa (Rtd.), said they were in the state for a familiarization tour to assess completed and ongoing projects, as well as receive the demands of the people.
Tarfa assured that the board would do its best to ensure that the North East had access to development without hindrance. He added that he would work closely with the state government.
Tarfa commended the commitment of the present administration to rapid infrastructural development in the state, which had made Yobe second to none.
