Cross River State government in south-south Nigeria says it has spent 11.5 billion naira to build an ultra-modern Teachers Training Institute in Biase local government area of the state.
The Commissioner for Quality Education, Dr. Godwin Amanke disclosed this during a chat with journalists in Calabar at a ministerial briefing.
Dr. Amanke in his presentation said that the essence of the investment was to build capacities of its teachers and would be educators within and outside the state.
“We have spent 11.5 billion naira for the construction of an ultra-modern teachers training institute in Biase local government area where we hope to provide top notch educational training for existing teachers and those we are employing in a few weeks.
“Our goal is to ensure that we churn out quality students from our schools in Cross River State, who stand the chance to compete with their peers anywhere in the world,” he said.
Amanke also hinted that a few secondary school principals, who engage in illegalities, were dismissed, while others have been suspended, demoted and transferred out of the system.
He said: “We have given a lot of queries. 12 principals were removed; six suspended and 16 were transferred for various degrees of misdemeanors. We are currently working on employing 1,000 teachers for public schools in state.”
Semi-urban towns
Also speaking at the parley was the Commissioner for Rural Transformation, Mr. Edem Okokon, who disclosed that a 19.2 kilometre road has been asphalted in Obudu local government area, some rural roads were rehabilitated and several solar powered boreholes sunk in Obudu, Obanliku, Bekwara, and Yala council areas to ameliorate the shortage of potable water.
“The mandate of the Ministry of Rural Transformation is to provide social amenities in villages and give such communities the statuses of semi- urban town. In Obudu and Obanliku local government areas, the ministry has invested more than 11.3 million naira to provide an average of two boreholes per community. We have similar intervention ongoing in Yala and Bekwara local government areas simultaneously,” he said.
He further disclosed that the government funded some upgraded social housing at the Becheve community near the ranch resort, while the ministry was making concerted effort to improve living conditions of the people of Ebom-Ebijakara communities in Abi local government area.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Eric Anderson appealed to the Nigerian Government to release the N45 billion approved as compensation to the state and individuals whose properties were destroyed during the EndSARS protest.
