By Alhaji (Dr.) Onujagbe Nasir Audu
Education remains the greatest investment any society can make in its future. Nations that have attained enviable heights in science, technology, industrialization, and good governance did so by consciously investing in quality education and preserving their educational institutions.
Unfortunately, the reverse appears to be the case with one of Kogi State’s oldest and most celebrated institutions—Okene Secondary School, Ukpogo, Okene Local Government Area.
This historic school is not merely a collection of aging buildings. It is a symbol of excellence, discipline, scholarship, and leadership. For decades, it served as an intellectual breeding ground that produced distinguished academics, medical practitioners, engineers, lawyers, administrators, military officers, business moguls, politicians, technocrats, and other professionals who have contributed immensely to the development of Kogi State and Nigeria.
Today, that same institution is gradually slipping into extinction.
The once-vibrant classrooms have become dilapidated structures. Learning facilities have deteriorated, while the school environment no longer reflects the prestige associated with one of the foremost educational institutions in Egbiraland. What should be a centre of excellence now stands as a painful reminder of years of neglect.
This situation should concern every son and daughter of Kogi State, irrespective of political, ethnic, or religious affiliation. A society that abandons its educational heritage is unknowingly mortgaging its future.
The collapse of Okene Secondary School is not merely an infrastructural failure; it is a threat to the human capital development of Kogi Central. Every neglected classroom represents lost opportunities. Every abandoned laboratory signifies unrealized scientific discoveries. Every collapsing school building weakens our capacity to produce the next generation of competent leaders, professionals, innovators, and entrepreneurs.
In the twenty-first century, when nations are competing through knowledge, innovation, and technology, it is unacceptable that a school of such historical significance should be left to decay. The future belongs to societies that invest in education, not those that abandon it.
Even more disturbing is the reality that Kogi Central has occupied strategic positions in the governance of Kogi State for well over a decade. One would naturally expect that educational institutions within the district would receive deliberate attention and sustained investment. Sadly, many public schools continue to deteriorate while silence prevails.
This is not about assigning blame but about accepting collective responsibility. History will not remember the excuses we offered; it will remember the institutions we preserved or allowed to disappear.
Another disturbing trend that deserves urgent government attention is the systematic encroachment upon school lands throughout Kogi Central. Large portions of land originally reserved for academic expansion, sporting facilities, agricultural education, and future development have gradually been converted into residential buildings and private properties.
This development poses a serious threat to educational growth. Schools require adequate land not only for classrooms but also for sports, vocational training, practical agriculture, recreation, and future expansion. A school stripped of its land is a school deprived of its future.
It is therefore imperative for the Kogi State Government to undertake a comprehensive review of all public school properties across the state, recover illegally occupied school lands where legally possible, and establish stronger measures to protect educational assets from further encroachment.
His Excellency, Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo, has repeatedly demonstrated a commitment to improving the welfare of the people of Kogi State. The rescue of Okene Secondary School presents another opportunity for his administration to leave an enduring legacy in the education sector.
The rehabilitation of this institution should not be viewed as an ordinary construction project. It is a strategic investment in the future of Egbiraland and Kogi State. It is an opportunity to restore hope, preserve history, inspire excellence, and strengthen the state’s human capital base.
Government alone cannot shoulder this responsibility. The alumni association, traditional rulers, community leaders, private organisations, philanthropists, and development partners should also rise to the occasion. The preservation of educational heritage is a collective responsibility.
The story of Okene Secondary School should not end in abandonment. It should become a remarkable story of restoration.
Future generations deserve to inherit institutions that inspire learning rather than ruins that symbolize neglect. They deserve classrooms equipped for modern education, functional laboratories, well-stocked libraries, ICT centres, and sporting facilities that prepare them for global competitiveness.
The rescue of Okene Secondary School is therefore not simply about preserving buildings. It is about preserving dreams, protecting history, strengthening human capital, and securing the future of Kogi State.
The time to act is now.
If we fail to save this historic institution today, history may remember our generation as the one that allowed one of Egbiraland’s greatest educational legacies to disappear. But if we rise together to restore it, posterity will celebrate us as the generation that rescued a monument of knowledge from extinction.
May wisdom prevail over indifference, and may action replace neglect.
The future of Kogi State begins in its classrooms. Let us not allow those classrooms to crumble away
By Alhaji (Dr.) Onujagbe Nasir Audu
onujagbenasir@gmail.com
08033489385.whatsApp only
