As part of efforts to promote
academic excellence among school children in Cross River state, wife
of the governor, Mrs. Obioma Liyel Imoke, has promised to set up a
resource centre in any school that will perform creditably in any
school competitions organized by her in the state.
Speaking at the prize
presentation ceremony of the first Calabar Carnival Essay Competition
for secondary and tertiary institutions with the theme "Sustaining
Earth’s Treasures Through our Culture," organized by the state’s
Carnival Commission and A State Fit for a Child (ASFAC) in Calabar,
Mrs. Imoke informed that such resource centres would, apart from
enhance children’s academic pursuit, facilitate research and skills
acquisition for future challenges.
She recalled that when ASFAC was
launched in May this year, the state governor, Senator Liyel Imoke
promised to involve children in the governance of the state by giving
them opportunities to make inputs on policy making, adding that the
event was one of such avenues for children to contribute their quota
to the development of the state through participation in the
competition and meaningful contributions to the sustenance of earth’s
treasures.
The governor’s wife called on
the media, especially the print, to encourage the future generation by
publishing in their newspapers and magazines the best articles written
by children.
She commended those who
responded to her call at such a short notice to participate in the
competition and encouraged those who did not take the programme
serious, to embrace it next year.
Imoke also advised winners of
the various prizes to ensure judicious use of their monies.
Earlier in her address,
executive secretary, Carnival Commission, Mrs. Elenda Osima Dukobo,
said theme of the competition was carefully chosen, bearing in mind
the global concern on earth deterioration and hence, to alert the
children who incidentally are the future leaders, on the negative
impact of the phenomenon on the earth.
She said that 200 entries were
received for the competition and lauded the schools that participated
for their prompt responses.
In his remark, commissioner for
environment, Dr. Julius Okputu, advised that issues of environment
should always be given topmost priority in the scheme of things and
promised to support subsequent editions of the programme.
He reminded the children that
the future is in their hands and that they have to rise to the
responsibility of protecting it as well as ensuring that environmental
endowment in the state, especially its status as one of the
biodiversity hot spot in the world, is sustained.
Commissioner for education, Dr.
Offiong Ani Offiong, on his part, explained that after collection of
entries, the committee screened only 85 from secondary school and 89
from tertiary institutions and that winners were selected purely on
merit.
He called on the organisers to
ensure that the next edition is written under strict examination
conditions for proper monitoring, and assessment and to consider
having two consolation prizes for the fourth and fifth positions.
Breakdown of the result shows
that in the tertiary institution category, Miss Irene Nyong Okpo of
Geography & Regional Planning (EPM), University of Calabar, came first
with a total score of 63 points; Ifiok – Kokoette Udo and Ito Eke
Efembe of the same department took second and third with total scores
of 60 and 56 points, respectively.
In the secondary school
category, Master Emmanuel Benedicts Abua of Regina Pacis Modern
Secondary School, Obubra, came first with 64 points, while Sunny
Ndengbe Magam of Community Secondary School, Nde Ikom and Ubio Daniel
Obu of Christian High School, Atakpa, Calabar came second and third
with 63 and 62 points, respectively.
