Anambra’s Educational Triumph
Anambra’s Educational Triumph
Anambra’s Educational Triumph: The Unifier, Mr. Peter Obi, Revives the State’s School System and Strengthens Nigeria’s Future
By Hon. Amb. Kingland Justin
Friday, 5th December was another remarkable day with His Excellency, Mr. Peter Obi. In his usual committed style, he returned from the UK through Air Peace, London to Abuja. Since there was no early morning flight from Abuja to Asaba or Anambra, he immediately connected to Air Peace again, flying from Abuja to Lagos, and then joined the 8:30 a.m. flight from Lagos to Anambra.
Upon arriving in Anambra, he was reminded of his scheduled engagements in Abuja, Lagos, and Ibadan. But due to the recent withdrawal of his police security men, he had to cancel all those engagements at once.
Immediately after landing, he went straight to join the Holy Mass for the 140th Anniversary of the Advent of Catholicism in the former Eastern Region of Nigeria, held at the Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity, Onitsha. Also present at the celebration were Cardinal Francis Arinze, who was among the Mass celebrants, Most Rev. Valerian Okeke, the Archbishop of Onitsha Archdiocese, and Michael Francis Crotty, the Pope’s representative to Nigeria.
After the Mass, Mr. Peter Obi joined the Archbishop for an inspection of the ongoing building project for Shanahan University, a major educational development being undertaken by the Church. From there, they proceeded together to Christ the King College (CKC), Onitsha. At CKC, Apostolic Nuncio Michael Francis Crotty addressed the students warmly, spoke to them like a father, and blessed them.
Next, they moved to Queen of the Rosary College (QRC), Onitsha, where Archbishop Crotty once again spoke with the students and offered his blessing. The students could not contain their joy and excitement seeing His Excellency Mr. Peter Obi. Their joyful chants filled the air, celebrating a man who has shown exceptional vision for education and national development.
From QRC, they headed to their final stop, St. Charles College. At St. Charles, when the Archbishop was called to speak, he addressed the gathering with deep emotion. He shared the true story of how mission schools were originally built and managed by the Church. After the war, the Church continued caring for these schools, and they were doing well. But then, the government took the schools, not from every church in Nigeria, but only in Anambra State. For 40 years under government control, the schools declined badly, with poor infrastructure and deteriorating standards.
The Archbishop explained that everything changed through God’s intervention when Mr. Peter Obi became Governor of Anambra State. The Church approached him and pleaded for the return of the schools, promising that they would revive and rebuild them and also uplift the entire educational system to high standard. In response, Mr. Peter Obi, who has an expectational love and vision to education returned all the mission schools to their original owners, the Church.
Within one year of that decision, Anambra moved from 36th position in education nationwide to 1st position. The schools went on to win major competitions in Chicago, Canada, Malaysia, Singapore, and even in Zimbabwe, coming home each time with Gold medals and glory. For ten straight years, they remained champions. The Archbishop openly declared that all thanks go to Mr. Peter Obi, the man God used to restore the glory of education in Anambra State.
His Excellency, Peter Ryan, the Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, addressed the students during the school visits, inspiring them to dream big. He also told them about the Ireland’s role in spreading Christianity to eastern Nigeria and noted that many Irish families have connections to Nigeria, especially Anambra State. He also shared that six footballers with Nigerian root plays for Ireland’s national team, using them as examples of what young Nigerians can achieve. The Ambassador encouraged the students to also pursue their passions, and promised to support them by providing more books for their libraries.
The Pope’s representative to Nigeria, Archbishop Michael Francis Crotty, spoke once more to the students and blessed everyone before they departed.
A New Nigeria is POssible
