Going to school in 80s and early 90s is a very big project just like someone preparing for a house building. Just like how less privilege individuals saved for many years for a building project that is a good illustration to depict how less-privilege parents prepare ahead of their Wards’ admission year in the past.
The working class parent whose monthly salary payment is not enough to take care of their children’s school fees would go extra length to obtain short-term loan from banks for the admission process of their children. The children of these parents are not left out too as many would have to undertake in menial jobs to raise little fund to support whatever their parent gathered ahead of their admission year. The children whose parent show no seriousness or financially buoyant would stay at home for years before they finally gain admission into secondary schools or any higher institutions of learning.
Whether Parent is a working class individual or not, education for their children is not an easy task as they solely take care of their responsibility without the help from any quarter. Even when the children finally gained admission into school, it is still a great challenge as the parent hustle for more fund to cater for their yearly or quarterly purchase of school textbook and other educational materials.
Parents who lack fund to do all these a time opt for motor mechanic, carpentry, tailoring and others for their children. The young girls among the less-privilege home are always advised to marry early in life to avoid further parental responsibility on them. Due to the indecision of these parents, brilliant young boys and girls who would have become our intellectual today have had their education wasted. Those who were not wise enough to enrol their Wards vocational work, such children later in life took to crime and the aftermath is the social menace as we experienced in our society today. In those days, scholarship from private individuals and corporate organizations are very rare as it comes one in tens of brilliant students.
But today, this is not the case as an average and brilliant students can gain admission and even advance their education with ease without good financial backing from their parents. Today, What the Students need is to show serious commitment to their studies as many of them would have their school fees paid by politicians. Today, paying school fees for Students has become a sort of competition by political officer holders and the aspiring politicians. People who have political aspiration undertake this measure as a mean to sell themselves very well to the public ahead of any election contest.
These generational Youths are very lucky. Aside their quarterly school fees being paid for, the final year students have their WAEC registration fees paid by the State Government and in some case by private individuals too. Juxtaposing this to what was obtainable in the past, the present Youths are very lucky. In our time, every individual parent would have to source for fund to pay for their respective wards’ School fees. Inability to pay could cause Students’ withdrawal from the schools.
These generational Youths are so lucky. Today, they did not only enjoy WAEC registration being paid by the State government or private individual, some even get their JAMB form registration paid by serving and aspiring politicians too. Even when they finally gained admission into any institution of higher learning, State Government and Politicians still offer them educational scholarship. Many present Students in University, Polytechnic and College of Education are enjoying scholarship of different sorts.
In the past where students dropped out of school due to lack of fund to pay school fees and this is the case as of today. Today, what generational Youths need is to show serious commitment to their studies as they can it make through without good financially backing from their parent. What a lucky generation!
Shaibu Stephen is a public affairs commentator and Journalist writes from Abuja. He is on facebook and whatsapp platform and reachable via phone number 09075716236. Kindly search and like his facebook page to subscribe for his daily article.
