Brave Dickson
The immediate past senator representing Rivers South-East Senatorial District, Senator Magnus Abe, has donated over 100 new laptops to PhD holders, doctoral students from his senatorial district as well as to some outstanding Rivers State-based journalists as a way of supporting their academic and career pursuits.
At an event tagged, “End-Of-Term Support for PhD/Doctoral Students and Outstanding Journalists,” the senator thanked the people of his constituency for voting him into the Senate.
Senator Abe said, “I am giving you these laptops to express my appreciation to the people of Rivers Southeast Senatorial District for voting me into the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria not just once but twice.
“In fact, the second time I got into the Senate, everybody had given up because the battle became too much but the people of my senatorial district were resolute and determined to make sure I win and I want to sincerely thank you.
“I believe what we are doing today has significance that will make you drivers of the same vision. The mode of selecting recipients for these gifts was strictly on merit.
“I also come to find out during my time in the Senate that Tai and Oyigbo are the weaker LGAs in our senatorial district in terms of education and I will still make sure I encourage them educationally.
“In my days as a child, the government at that time always ensure that we all have equal opportunity to go to school. We the leaders today should try and give the same equal opportunity to children of other parents to go to school. Because the absence of such equal opportunity will always result in the kidnappers, cultists, robbers and other criminals we see around us today.
“I am happy that some politicians are now thirsty for knowledge. Some of them are doing their doctoral studies. Not those type who get doctorate degrees from their houses and at the end of the day, they can neither speak nor sound like a doctor. I was happy to see a lot of politicians who came out here to speak and it really shows they are reading for their doctorates.
“Today, statistically, we were told that the number of children that are out of school in Nigeria is over 18million which is more than the populations of Sweden and the Netherlands. I am not even talking about the number of children that are in school but are actually not learning anything.
“In this 21st century, anybody without the knowledge of the internet is a functional illiterate. The world to come will be a world that will be driven by the internet.
“Once again, I want to use this privilege to thank the people of Rivers Southeast for the love they have shown me. I will be ready to do anything to improve your lives positively and let’s make sure we insist on doing the right thing in anywhere we find ourselves for the betterment of our country.”
In his opening remarks, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in the state, Hon. Kadilo Kabari described Senator Abe as a leader with a passion for transforming lives for the future.
Hon Kadilo said, “we have a leader in the person of Distinguished Senator Magnus Abe whose words and actions always positively prepare the youths for the future. Some persons here in one time or the other had received doctoral or graduate skills support from Distinguished Senator Abe.
“There was a time our senator here told the world that he will give the people of his senatorial district what he gives to his own children such as good education, computers etc, and he has been doing it for other children till today.
” I see you (Distinguished Senator Abe) as a leader that has used your tenures in political offices to positively develop the minds of Rivers people. Today, you are giving them computers with applications that will enhance their research”.
On his part, Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists, Rivers State Council, Mr Job Stanley Job advised the beneficiaries to make good use of the gifts they have received from Senator Abe.
According to him, “I am not surprised at what happened today because Distinguished Senator Magnus Abe is a philanthropist. He has always given assistance to a lot of people both within and outside his senatorial zone.
“He has always been of help to NUJ too anytime we call on him.
My advice to the recipients is that they should try and make good use of what has been given to them by the senator because that is the only way they can make him proud.”
The event was well attended by politicians, media practitioners, scholars with an award of education icon presented to the senator by the National Association of Rivers State Students.
