Jubilation as Champion Breweries donate over 200 chairs, tables, desks to School in Akwa Ibom

Jubilation as Champion Breweries donate over 200 chairs, tables, desks to School in Akwa Ibom

Champion Breweries   Plc Uyo yesterday put smiles on the faces of teachers and pupils of St. Athaneous Primary School Nung Ukim, Primary School Aka in Obio Imo Street and Offot Jubilee Primary School Aka Offot all in Uyo capital city with the donation of over 200 desks, chairs and tables to enhance their studying environment.

 The benefiting schools cited within their areas of operations have suffered the dearth of these basic facilities over the years. 

The Managing Director of Champion Breweries Plc Mr. Patrick Ejidoh who led other management staff to the schools explained that providing  conducive learning environment is imperative for children stressing that Government alone cannot shoulder the responsibilities. 

Mr. Ejidoh opined that it is imperative for corporate bodies and highly spirited citizens to support the efforts of the State Government in ensuring the advancement of the Educational system of the state. 

According to the Managing Director, “Today we are presenting some desks, tables and chairs for the pupils and teachers to support the schools and improve the learning and teaching condition”. 

We advocate that it should be put into proper use maintained and safeguarded for the betterment of these young children. 

He urged the pupils to be of good behaviour and grow up as good and responsible citizens while charging the teachers to guide and mentor them more proactively noting that it is very challenging to manage children in their formative stage in a country like Nigeria. “If we get it right at this stage the Nigeria will be better” he stated. 

On what motivated their kind gestures towards the schools, Mr Patrick Ejidoh highlighted, “The journey towards going round the schools in our host communities started when my daughter serving in the state returned home and was very muddy”. 

She told me that she saw little kids in a primary school at Enwe Street, Uyo crossing major roads to get drinking water during school break period with the attendant risks involved in crossing such roads without guide. 

She pleaded that I should contact my friends to assist her in providing these amenities to the school which I did and she was able to give them two toilets and a bore hole of clean drinking water within the premises. On the day of the commissioning of her pet projects in the school, one of my colleagues who came with us drew my attention that children between 2, 3, 4 and 5 years of age were sitting on the floor while learning. I was shocked and asked if even the schools around our company are not suffering the same fate. 

That is why the following day, I started moving round the schools and when I saw the situations in the schools around us, I was moved and I pleaded with the management team that we must do something no matter how little”. We are giving these facilities in the first instance to three schools and in the next one year we will give out more facilities to them. We may likely give out support to teachers to improve themselves, help in the area of renovating of some schools, but it will all depend on the available funds.

This is our widow’s mite, we implore the teachers to take good care of these facilities because if they are destroy  fast, it wouldn’t be easy to be replaced, get the class rooms fortified against theft of the facilities”. He urged the village head to help in ensuring adequate provision of security for the facilities in the school.                          

On his own the State Commission for Education Pro. Victor Inoka expressed immense gratitude to the management of Champion Breweries Plc for their kind gesture. 

The commissioner who described the action of the champion breweries as encouraging and timely said it will further enhance the free and qualitative education of the Governor Udom Emmanuel’s administration.

 “Governor Emmanuel is ready to partner anybody or group that is ready to invest in Education in our dear state at any level”. The benefitting school should take good care of the facilities provided to enhance better learning and teaching. It is instructive to say here that Governor Emmanuel has zero tolerance to any form of levy or extortion from parents”. Teachers should desist from charging any form of fees by whatever name” he cautioned. 

The commissioner announced at the Event that the state government had paid WAEC fees for all the students and released subventions for all the schools in the state. He thanked the Host communities for the peaceful disposition towards the company prompting their operating in more conducive environment to make some profits to give back to the Host communities. 

Prof. Inoka highlighted that the state ministry of Education will support all actions from public spirited individuals towards improving the living standard of Akwa Ibom people.

 Also speaking the State Executive Chairman of Subeb Prof. Maria Ikoro said the board is pleased by the kind gesture of champion breweries towards adding value to the education of youths in the state. 

“I want to specially thank the management of champion breweries for recognizing that their relationship with the Host communities should not be parasitic but symbiotic for deciding to give back to the community part of what you get from them because if the community does not survive then the organisation cannot survive as well”. 

He said that the incumbent administration in the state places very high premium on quality education stressing that the government have embarked on missive infrastructural development, distribution of text and exercise books to schools across the state. 

She maintained that government upon observing the dearth of teachers across public schools recently approve the recruitment of about 3,000 NCE for employment into public schools. 

Receiving the Desks, chairs and tables on behalf of his school, the Head teacher of St. Athanasus Catholic School Nung Uko Ibesikpo. Mr. Nkereuwem Udo Ekong said, “the facilities you have provided to the school was one of the most challenges that faced the school. But today this has alleviated our sufferings and these chairs have the capacity of taking care of 190 pupils and our children will no more sit on the floor”.

 The Head Teacher who stated that the school was established 92 years ago noted that the good gesture from champion breweries was the very first from any private sector. 

“I am happy that champion Breweries is that first private sector operator that partnered with government in promoting the educational development in our schools” he said. In the same vein, the Head mistress of Offot Jubilee primary schools Aka Offot Mrs. Esther Asanga said the problem of inadequate school facilities had been quite a challenge to them expressing gratitude to Champion Breweries for their grand gesture towards them. 

The Head Mistress who appealed to other corporate bodies and public spirited people to emulate Champion Breweries said Education, especially primary school education can’t be left alone to government to handle. She pledged on behalf of the management of the school to make good and judicious use of the facilities to encourage their benefactors to do more. Also speaking the Village Head of Nung Uku Ibesikpo Village Council, Eteidung Clement E. Ekeng acknowledged Education as the key to the development of any nation which cannot be satisfactorily done by Government alone. 

The Village Head who described the facilities donated by Champion Breweries as a memorial and legacy for the company noted that the facilities will help foster learning and impartation of knowledge to the next generation. According to Eteidung Clement E. Ekong, “we also acknowledge your contributions in the area of crime reduction by providing employment to youths of the state and award of scholarship to mention but a few”.

 On his own the Village Head of Aka community Eteidung Francis Morgan said he has personally attended more than 15 life touching projects executed by the Champion Breweries for Aka community, Uyo.

 He told the benefiting pupils that the company will be willing to give scholarships and other benefits to those who excel in their academic studies.

 Eteidung Morgan pleaded with Champions Breweries to assist in renovating the primary school in Aka communities vandalized by criminals to help the pupils return and use the classrooms which Aluminum roofs were stolen.