Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, has urged Nigerian leaders to prioritise the educational welfare of students, warning against allowing them to bear the brunt of institutional and leadership failures.
Obi made this call via a post on his verified X (formerly Twitter) handle on Saturday, following a visit to the Faculty of Dental Studies at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN). He expressed grave concern over the challenges facing medical and dental students in several state-owned universities, with particular reference to the University of Calabar (UNICAL).
“I was inundated with troubling reports regarding the situation at UNICAL, where issues surrounding dental students’ graduation and induction quotas have raised serious concern,” Obi stated.
While noting the Vice Chancellor of UNICAL’s assurances to address the issue, Obi stressed the urgent need for resolution.
“Whatever the root cause, one thing is clear: no student should suffer due to what I consider a failure of leadership,” he wrote. “We must give our youth the necessary education, especially in critical fields like science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).”
Obi underscored the importance of uninterrupted academic progression, especially in technical and healthcare-related fields, adding that bureaucratic and institutional lapses must not derail students’ futures.
Reflecting on a similar crisis during his tenure as Governor of Anambra State, Obi recalled inheriting a situation where the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria had withdrawn accreditation from Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University’s medical school due to the absence of a teaching hospital.
“Students who had spent three to four years studying medicine were told they could only graduate in other science disciplines,” he said. “I had barely assumed office when I met the crisis, but I refused to let those innocent students become victims.”
To salvage the situation, Obi appealed directly to the council and took responsibility by committing to build a teaching hospital. He completed the project — now the Odumegwu Ojukwu Teaching Hospital in Awka — in under 18 months, thereby restoring accreditation and saving students’ careers.
He called on the Federal Government to step in and support the leadership of UNICAL, both financially and administratively, to quickly resolve the ongoing crisis and prevent further disruption of students’ academic lives.
“The Vice Chancellor of the University of Calabar and her team must be empowered to resolve this issue immediately, to ensure that no student is made to suffer for circumstances beyond their control,” Obi appealed.
Concluding his statement, Obi called for a national reawakening on the importance of education and healthcare, warning against the continued neglect of these critical sectors.
“Our children must not continue to lose their future in Nigeria,” he cautioned.
EduTimes Africa, a product of Education Times Africa, is a magazine publication that aims to lend its support to close the yawning gap in Africa's educational development.
