Senator Austin Akobundu, representing Abia Central Senatorial District, has declared that no student in his constituency will be forced to abandon education because of an inability to pay school fees as long as he remains their representative.

Akobundu, now a member of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) after leaving the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), made the declaration at the weekend during the presentation of scholarship cheques to beneficiaries of his Education Support/Grant Programme.

Under the scheme, students in tertiary institutions received ₦200,000 each, while final-year students of the Oboro Ikwuano National Teachers Institute (NTI) Study Centre were presented a total of ₦7,217,200 through the centre’s coordinator, Mrs. Victoria Ebillah.

Addressing the beneficiaries, the former Minister of State for Defence described the initiative as an investment in the future rather than a mere scholarship programme.

“This programme is about investing in destinies and planting seeds in the lives of our young people. The harvest from this investment will secure the future of Abia Central Senatorial District through human capital development,” he said.

Akobundu stressed that education remains the most effective tool for transforming lives and communities.

“No child in Abia Central should drop out of school because of poverty while I am their senator. Education remains the most enduring investment we can make in our people. It is the foundation for sustainable development, innovation and responsible leadership,” he said.

He urged the beneficiaries to justify the support by avoiding examination malpractice, cultism, drug abuse, prostitution, truancy and other social vices, assuring constituents that the scholarship programme would be sustained.

His Legislative Aide, Stanley Nwabuisi, said the initiative was designed to support indigent students in pursuing their academic ambitions, describing education as the bedrock of societal development.

The Special Guest of Honour and Vice-Chancellor of Amadeus University, Prof. Henry Chima Eke, commended Akobundu for investing in the education of young people and encouraged beneficiaries to make the most of the opportunity.

He also urged them to take advantage of the university’s growing range of programmes in the arts, management, social sciences, law, medicine, health sciences, information technology and other disciplines.

Mrs. Victoria Ebillah, Coordinator of the Ikwuano NTI Study Centre, commended the senator for consistently funding the programme, noting that the beneficiaries had continued to excel academically.

Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Ezenwa Godswill, a Medicine and Surgery student at Abia State University, thanked the senator for the support and pledged that the students would remain committed to academic excellence and make him proud through their achievements. (The Guardian)

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