By, Olawale Ogunbusola

The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Dr Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has announced university scholarships for the three best-performing students of Ife Girls’ High School, Eleyele, Ile-Ife, in their next school certificate examinations.

He made the announcement during the commissioning of the recently renovated school in Osun State on Monday.

He tasked the students to justify the investment in their education through outstanding academic performance.

The renovation which included four blocks of 15 classrooms, a block of four laboratory rooms, an Admin/Staff Block, the Principal’s Lodge (now the NYSC Lodge), a gatehouse and a fence will help to improve educational facilities within the school.

Newly built were structures such as 10 toilets, a borehole with nine water distribution outlets, solar power for the borehole, staff rooms and classes, an all-purpose sports court for basketball, volleyball, tennis and badminton, as well as chairs and tables for 200 students, among others.

The students were provided with 200 school bags, 1,000 notebooks, 400 pens, 200 pencils, 200 erasers, 200 sharpeners and 200 rulers as learning materials.

CG Adeniyi, in a polo shirt emblazoned with “Customs Cares” which was also worn by other officers, said the renovation had provided the students with a better learning environment and urged them to seize the opportunity to improve their results in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination.

“Before, when the environment was not good, maybe you were not having five credits. Now that you have a very good environment, we now want to have a better school certificate examination result,” he said.

Adeniyi urged the students to become good ambassadors of the school and return in the future to contribute to its development, just as old students had done.

According to him, the intervention was necessary to revive girl-child education at the school, which has more than 60 years of history but had suffered a decline in enrolment.

Adeniyi said the school, which once had thousands of students, had about 200 students before the intervention.

The Customs boss said efforts would be made to equip the laboratory and improve other facilities.

He stressed that the intervention would go beyond physical infrastructure to restore academic excellence and make education more attractive to young girls.

Adeniyi commended the Old Girls Association, the Osun State Government and the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, for supporting the project, urging all stakeholders to ensure that the school did not return to its former state of decay.

The CG disclosed that the renovation was carried out under the Customs Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme, which has education as one of its key focus areas.

He said that the Customs Service had undertaken similar CSR projects across the country, including the construction of a community hospital in Ibubu, Onne, Rivers State.

He added that a science hub was also being developed at Modakeke High School to expose members of the community to information and communication technology and emerging opportunities in the digital world.

The Comptroller-General urged the students to make the best use of the renovated facilities and work towards achieving excellent academic results.

In his remarks, the state Commissioner for Education, Hon. Adedipo Sunday Eluwole, commended CGC Adeniyi for facilitating the renovation and upgrading of critical facilities at Ife Girls’ High School, noting that the intervention covered classrooms, water and sanitation facilities, sports infrastructure, administrative areas and other amenities necessary for creating a safe and conducive learning environment.

Eluwole, who represented Governor Ademola Adeleke, stressed the importance of partnerships in improving educational infrastructure.

He said the provision of sports facilities would promote discipline, teamwork, leadership and physical fitness among students, adding that the government welcomed responsible collaborations that would complement its efforts in the education sector.

Eluwole spoke on the government’s plan to reintroduce boarding facilities in selected secondary schools across the state, beginning with one school in each of the three senatorial zones, with Ife Girls’ High School as a beneficiary.

He said the initiative was aimed at ensuring the proper utilisation of renovated school facilities and improving access to quality education across the state.

In her address, the school principal, Mrs Martina Iyabo Akinremi, appreciated the Comptroller-General for the successful completion of the project, saying that the investment is for the future of the students and the society.

Pledging that the school would properly maintain the facilities, the principal also urged the students to see the renovation as an opportunity and a responsibility which should be taken care of in order for them to be inspired to achieve greater academic success.

Dignitaries at the event were the Commissioner for Finance, Hon. Ogungbile Adeola Olusola; the Chairman, Ife Development Board, Mr Gbenga Adefaye; the representative of the Ooni of Ife; members of the academic community from Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife; old students of the school; and
Area Commander and deputy comptroller, Oyo/Osun Area Command, Adewale Adewole, among others