Counsellors urged to upgrade Professional Skills

The Senator representing Akwa Ibom North East Senatorial District, Senator Ita Enang has charged the Counselling Association of Nigeria, CASSON members to sharpen and improve their skills and approach of counselling in order to meet the challenges of dire need of counselling services in the society.

Enang who gave the charge Tuesday in a key note address he presented during the 38th annual international conference of the counselling association of Nigeria, CASSON, held in Uyo, said “The society today, more than ever, needs the services of professionalized guidance and counseling practitioners.

The law maker who is the chairman rules and business committee in the senate, observed that pastors, motivational speakers, soothsayers and herbalist have taken over the jobs of the professional counsellors, and urged them to cause a paradigm shift, by modernizing the practice, getting motivational and seeking opportunities in industries, private sectors etc and not just with government institutions.

He stressed the need for CASSON to elevate their professional status by making it to be legalized as it is done in some foreign countries.

According to Enang, “The challenge of collapsed educational system in Nigeria, leading to unemployment and insecurity is caused by either absence of counselling or the ignoring of counsel or failure of counselling”.

He called on the government to regulate and restrict admission in some course that may not provide employment opportunities after graduation.

Declaring the conference open the governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio who was represented by his Deputy, Lady Valerie Ebe called on the professional counsellors to work on the psyche of the youths in order to improve on their behavior.

Akpabio who said the theme of the conference, “Counselling for Social and Psychological Reconstruction, is apt and timely especially now that there has been an upturn in social and moral values,” stressed that “counselling plays significant role in nation building and responsibility to transform the world of educational institutions and the larger society”

The governor who noted “the society is in dire need of your professional input and contribution,” said this would complement government efforts and bring normalcy to the society.

In his address, the National President of CASSON, Prof. Alfred Adegoke, stressed the importance of recognizing and protecting counselling profession by the law of the country as it is done in other parts of the world.

According to Adegoke, “this is the only way to transform counseling into an encompassing and respected profession, comparable to other known profession in this country such as the legal and medical profession”.

He called on government, individuals and private sector to support the association to complete its secretariat building project which he said has since commenced.

The president noted that the challenge the country is facing needs the services of professional counsellors and called on CASSON members to rise to the challenges by making available their services as part of their contributions to nation building.

While welcoming the participants to the conference, the State Chairman of CASSON Dr. Nse W. Udomisor in his address thanked the Governor for his support to the success of the conference.

Udomisor enumerated the challenges facing the association to include financial, infrastructural, and logistic among others and solicited the support of government to enhance the activities of the association in the state while pledging to forward their proposal to the government.

The state chairman of CASSON who named the governor, the grand patron of CASSON and Senator Ita Enang the patron, said “you are the grand patron of CASSON even when your tenure expires in 2015”.

He called on the governor to extend his transformation agenda to the association by building counselling clinic in the state.

High point of the opening ceremony of the conference includes the investiture of the governor as grand patron and Senator Ita Enang as the patron of the association and presentation of lead papers.