By Victor Nwegede
National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), has called Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State to contest presidential position of the country in 2023.
The Association through the National President, Comrade Sunday Asefo Dayo made the call during the opening ceremony of its 65th Senate emergency meeting held at Christian Ecumenical Centre, Abakaliki.
The NANS President expressed joy that Nigerian students made a right choice by endorsing the best youth friendly governor in the country for the apex position in 'Aso Rock', commending his execellent records in human and infrastructural development in Ebonyi state.
He promised that the association would campaign for Umahi to emerge in the presidential race come 2023 in considering his friendliness with the youth wings especially the Nigerian students since assumed Office as Ebonyi State Governor.
“Your Excellency, you have been called the most student friendly Governor, the National Association of Nigerian Students which has the population of over forty one million Nigerian Students across home and diaspora have conferred on you the Governor of Nigerian Students, your Excellency, my State is at the back of Ebonyi State," he said.
Responding, Governor Umahi thanked the association for choosing Ebonyi State for the conference and commended their conduct during the event with his expression on the kind of love he has for the young people.
He said: "The truth is that I love the youths, when I see a young man that is doing very well, I feel so much fulfilled, I am so excited by the number of disciplined and well dressed youths that gathered here, when I listened to the Senate President speak, I became more proud about the future of this country, I think you have dwelt so much in the job of follow follow, it is time to take the future in your hands, you are leaders and great leaders, you have got to believe in yourselves. I believe in our students, after the COVID-19, our Government decided to reduce school fees in our Higher Institutions, even though our fees in Ebonyi State was the smallest in the entire Country but this was to alleviate the problems of our parents. We decided that you have twenty four hours light in Ebonyi State University in both campuses, we also felt that there should be water running throughout, we will be achieving 100% before the end of April. If you do not stand up to prepare a place for your children, your children will suffer more than you, you are struggling and if you don’t take time, your generation will not take leadership, you got to say no to that”
He added that his government is also sowing to the prosperity of Ebonyi Youths through the King David Gifted Academy which gives gifted Ebonyi children world Class training to enable them be self reliant and become employers of labour on graduation.
“Everything about them is taken care of by the Government, in Junior WAEC, we want 200 students to make all ‘A’, it will happen, the product of the school, some of them will school outside Nigeria, Government will take care of their school fees until they go and come back, Catholics have taken over the school, they are running the school," Umahi hinted.
He further stated that his government was poised to establish medical tourism centre and creating job opportunities for youths of the state.
The governor also announced that inter school sports competition would soon start in Ebonyi as a part of encouraging the youths in productive ventures and harnessing the talented ones.
“We are Building Centre of excellence in the name of College of Medicine, we have center where they will do kidney transplant, we have Centre for cancer, we have Centre for eye treatment and there is what we have that is in no where in Africa, it is a Centre that is producing dialyzers, it is not in anywhere in Africa, all these equipment, we have paid for 90% of them.
“We are starting our famous inter school sports, it is the product of EndSARS Protest, it will soon start and so our students are going to be very busy again, you are the one that will be designing the bridges that we ply on, if we do not take proper care of you, how can you take care of us," he added.
Governor Umahi however, charged Nigerian leaders to be patriotic and carry the interest of the youths at heart as he encouraged the youth to avoid allowing themselves to be used for kidnapping, cultism and criminal activities but strive to become an instrument of peaceful co-existence and progressive society.
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