By Ola Ajayi

Education in the South West today is not the same with the vision of late chief Bola Ige. There are so many challenges. In Osun, it is hijab, in Oyo, teachers are not paid.   What is your advice to the Southwest governors?

Recently, I was in Osogbo at an education roundtable summit and there Osun, Ogun and Oyo states presented what they were doing in education and I must say that a lot of good work is going on. I would be the first to encourage government. The state of Osun has beautiful schools, and feeding programmes for elementary school students. So, there is a lot of good work. In terms of that,   I will say I am proud of what I saw in the state of Osun.

Hijab crisis

Mrs Funso Adegbola, the daughter of late Chief Bola Ige

The hijab crisis is just five children in a school of one thousand. It’s unfortunate that the press decides to highlight those five children in a school of one thousand. What about the other children there? I think it is the press that has over hyped it. I was in Osun State and schools were in  session.

We saw children eating and I think that is a caring government. The good things that are being done in the state of Osun are not being highlighted. The World Bank development report said that the school feeding programme in Osun State is the best in the whole of Nigeria and 12 states have followed it.

There is no religious crisis going on in Osun. I am a christian based school for example, I would not allow the wearing of hijab and I am just an individual. I do have muslim students in my school.   I have muslim members of staff but it is about being tolerant. There are some things that are so fundamental. I am a child of God, the setting of Vale College was based on a christian based dream and vision and no amount of money will make me convert it to a muslim school.

For the government of the state of Osun, I don’t think it has declared itself as an Islamic State, all the children have access to quality education. Ogun State too has some beautiful schools; they have many schools they are using like model schools. I am not going to criticise anybody just for criticising sake.

My own take is what can we do so that these Nigerian children don’t suffer because if we say my child will go to the Vale College, my child will go to America. The day your own child comes from America or whatever other  green pastures, it is these children that don’t have education that are going to make sure all of us don’t sleep.   So, it is in our best interest that all of us work together that every Nigerian child has access to good education.

What do you feel about Federal Government’s decision to employ 500,000 teachers?

I support the motive but it is in the implementation that we can do better. If there are 500,000 jobs to be taken, that’s a good thing. But, let us have 500,000 young people that are competent and who are actually certified; who have the passion for it and let us do a proper orientation teaching course for them so that they can meet our expectations. Few weeks ago, a Prof from the University of Ibadan said that private schools where yoruba speaking is prohibited should be closed down, what is your reaction to this?

For me, in my school Yoruba language is encouraged, I am a very proud Yoruba girl and I believe that unless you can speak your own language; write your own language, you cannot speak or write any other language that you need to speak. It is wrong, a lot of parents have bought into that line that your children don’t need to speak Yoruba. You can go anywhere else in the world and if you see an italian child in America,   that child will be able to speak Italian.