… As Fuel Subsidy Removal bites***

Some parents in Lagos State have called on the government to provide more alternative strategies to cushion the effects of the economic difficulties, for them to manage the rising cost of education.

They made the call in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday, ahead of a resumption of primary and secondary schools in the state for the 2023/2024 academic session on Monday.

The parents said that the economic situation in the country had led to an increase in school fees, uniforms, books, and other educational items, impacting the level of preparation for their children’s resumption.

Mrs Ugochi Okeugo, a businesswoman, said the situation had driven her to take a loan to buy textbooks and pay the school fees, in order to meet up with the resumption date.

“The school has increased their fees, and to buy textbooks these days is something else. The ones I bought for N1,500 last year are now N2,500.

“It has not been easy. The ones I can afford, I’ll buy for them and if I can’t, they will manage the ones they have.

“Changing school now would not be easy, because that would attract more school fees and you don’t know the kind of school you are going to put them in,” she said.

Mrs Eucheria Onwudiwe, another parent, said she had to forfeit traveling to the village for the yearly August meeting, to save money to pay for school fees, and change her daughters’ uniform, bags, and books.

“I have three children in school and the fees of that school are so high that, when I collected their pay slip, I noticed an increase of more than N20,000.

“Also, their transport fare was N45,000 last session and now it’s N70,000. I don’t even know how I’ll take them to school this term and bring them back home because the transport fare is too high,” she said.

Mrs Jane Anizoba, on her part, said she was in a tight corner as the economic situation had affected everything from school fees to feeding and transport.

“As parents, we make a lot of sacrifices, by cutting down on most of our expenses.

“For instance, women, in particular, we like parties and want to have one or two new clothes, bags, and shoes to put in our wardrobes.

“But now, we have to drop them and focus on the children because they are the reason why we are fighting and struggling, so their own needs always come first,” she said.

She urged school owners to consider receiving payment in installments to reduce the financial burden on parents.

Another parent, Mrs. Akudo Ubani, advised fellow parents not to relent in their efforts and make more sacrifices by reducing the rate at which they attend parties and buy  ‘asoebi’ (uniform special celebration clothes) to ensure children have a smooth resumption.

“This one has affected so much. They have increased school fees, transport, and every other thing has increased, and the salary has not increased.

“We are only in the hands of God, but we still believe that with God, everything is going to be easy for us, so we just have to manage and get the things we need to get,” she said.

On his part, Mr Ikenna Oham, said the removal of the fuel subsidy had posed a great economic challenge and put pressure on families who have children in school.

Oham, who has four children in the university and one in primary school, decried the increase in school fees and other fares, as a result of the economic hardship.

On transport, he said he had made plans for his son to stay with a relative, to reduce the amount spent on transport.

“Well, the thing is that children must go to school, you must eat, you must feed yourself, feed your family, you must survive. So, everyone is just being creative with how we do it.

“For now, my last child will stay with my younger sister who lives close to the school from Monday to Friday and then we go and bring him to stay the weekend with us.

“With that, we have been able to cushion the cost of sending him to school every day on transport, or going by bus or taking the car to go and drop him in school and coming back,” he said.

A school teacher, who simply identified herself as Mrs Regina, said that postponing school resumption due to economic difficulties could disrupt the children’s learning process.

She urged the government to provide reasonable palliative measures to cushion the effect of the fuel subsidy removal.

“Government should try and increase the salary of workers and create more job opportunities, she said.

NAN reports that the Lagos State Government, following the removal of fuel subsidy, slashed fares on the state-run means of transport by 50 percent, with effect from Aug. 2.

The state governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu had also said that commercial buses not owned by the government, popularly known as yellow buses, had promised to slash fares by 25 percent.

While the government is implementing its promise on its transport systems, many of the yellow buses have not matched theirs with action, leaving fares still high. 

-NAN

… As over 50 MWP Participants examine Maritime Legacy: the Osun-Oshogbo Grove***

The Vice Chancellor of Adeleke University, Prof. Solomon Adebola has stressed that increasing the literature for children on the maritime industry will not only stimulate the career interest of younger ones in the sector but equally begin a discussion on solutions to recurring shipping challenges in the nation.

 The Vice-Chancellor also tasked creative writers to highlight problems and proffer solutions to perennial problems affecting the nation’s maritime sector in their literary works.

Prof. Adebola made this call while speaking at the opening ceremony of the Maritime Writes Project 3-day Creative Writing Boot-camp, at Adeleke University, Ede, Osun State, on Sunday.

The Vice-Chancellor, who was represented by the Dean of Arts, Prof. Adegbite Tobalase, Stated that over 70 percent of the goods imported into the country come via the sea and this underscores the importance of maritime to the nation. 

He said that in the course of the training, some of the challenges confronting the sector have been discussed, and hoped that some of the writers will project these challenges and find lasting solutions to them.

**Also Read: Adeleke University VC Urges Writers To Explore, Find Solutions To Nigerian Maritime Woes…https://www.maritimefirstnewspaper.com/adeleke-university-vc-urges-writers-to-explore-find-solutions-to-nigerian-maritime-woes/

“As an institution, we are delighted with the high-level turnout of participants and we are hopeful that MWP continues to hold this programme annually in the university.”

*Some of the participants at the Osun Osogbo Groove

“MWP is building awareness about maritime and this is needed to ensure more people take up careers in the sector. This industry holds a lot of opportunities for children and youths.

 “There is also a lot that can be achieved via writing and the MWP harps on these benefits. The project is a two-way thing centred on maritime and also grooming people on creative writing,” he stated.

Prof. Adebola, however, opined that holding the 3-day event in Adeleke University avails the institution a unique opportunity to showcase the state-of-the-art infrastructure and conducive learning environment to participants coming from various parts of the country.

“I’m sure that most of the participants are wowed by what they have seen at the University. We also feel that it is an avenue for the university to give back to society by hosting this event. As indigenes and residents of Osun State participate in the Creative Writing Bootcamp, the university sees this as a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for the budding writers that this project promotes,” he said.

Speaking further,  Prof. Adebola described Osun Groove as one of the maritime heritages that younger ones should be exposed to in the nation.

According to him, several people feel that the Osun groove has to do with witchcraft and other spiritual things, but it portends more because it represents the culture of the Osun people.

“The name Osun and Oshogbo came from the settling of a group of people who discovered a body of water that represented a source of livelihood. Historically, these people had gravitated to Osun/ Oshogbo because they were in search of water,” he said.

He equally explained that the Osun groove aptly qualifies as a maritime heritage because it has an annual event that attracts national and international tourists for a weeklong event every August.

“Younger ones should be aware that the Osun groove is a maritime heritage that not only exists, but also provides a revenue-generating platform as it attracts tourists yearly. There have been several stories about the Osun groove but participants will realize that the place is peaceful and promotes the culture of the Oshogbo people,” he added.

Participants in the Osun MWP Creative Writing Bootcamp were scheduled to visit the Osun groove later in the day as part of activities lined-up for the 3-day event.

In a related development, over  50 participants actually embarked on a learning excursion to the famous Osun-Oshogbo grove to learn about its rich maritime heritage as part of the ongoing Creative Writing Bootcamp organized by The Maritime Writes Project (MWP).

The tour, which was held Monday, aided participants with the opportunity to know about the Osun goddess and how the first dwellers in Oshogbo had been captivated by the mystery of the marine environment leading to their settlement.

Covering over 75 hectares of land, the over 600-year-old Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove is a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage site with a ramble river dotted with sanctuaries and shrines, sculptures and artworks in honour of Osun and other deities

As part of efforts to preserve Nigeria’s maritime heritage via creative writing, the MWP 2023 participants were guided through the Osun-Oshogbo grove which is regarded as the dwelling place of the goddess of fertility Osun, one of the pantheon of Yoruba gods.

The tour included sightseeing various parts of the dense forest of the Sacred Grove, learning about the traditional gate and its symbolic artifacts, the suspended bridge built in 1935, the special river where prayers are still made to the river goddess and the water highly regarded as ‘agbo’ meaning herbal medicines.

Participants also learnt that fishing, bathing, and swimming are forbidden in the river, while the tour guide debated that there have been reported cases where fish caught in the river never got cooked.

Meanwhile, as a result of climate change, rainfall, and flooding, the sacred river, which has a sculpted mermaid and a fish base, has overflown its boundary in recent years.

Speaking with journalists, the Principal Museum Education Officer, National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Raji Lilian Tolulope, said the Osun Grove is the second listed World Heritage site in Nigeria.

Her words: “Osun Grove was listed on July 15, 2005, as a World Heritage site, but it has been a national monument since 1965. Preserving a national monument like this is very important because it tells our history. What would have been told as the history of the Oshogbo people if this monument wasn’t preserved over the years? How will their story of moving from Ipelomu to Oshogbo be captured? “

“They had their first and second palace here in this location. They also had their first market here. If this place wasn’t preserved how would we have remembered these stories? Their history would have gone on extinction.”

“A lot of Nigerian and African villages and historical accomplishments are going into extinction because we don’t keep records of things. It is also strange that foreigners are taking more interest in these historical events and making efforts to preserve them. If we can continue to preserve our history like Osun Grove, it will go a long way to maintaining Nigeria’s culture and historical events,” Raji said.

Raji equally stressed the impact of Susanne Wenger’s MFR, also known as Adunni Olorisha. The Austrian-Nigerian artist and Yoruba priestess who expatriated to Nigeria focused on the Yoruba culture and played a crucial role in building an artist cooperative in Osogbo.

Susanne Wenger collaborate with local artists in Osogbo to redevelop and redecorate the Osun Osogbo Sacred Grove with sculptures and carvings portraying the various activities of the Orishas.

On his part, the Head of Faculty, MWP, Dr. Taiwo Nolas-Alausa described the experience as a rewarding one for the participants as it will empower them to develop more creative story angles for the project.

According to Nolas-Alausa, the Osun grove heritage shows the influence of the maritime on communities which were the early beginnings of trade in Nigeria, adding that these historical events must be properly documented and preserved as maritime heritages.

After the Osun grove tour, one of the participants, Muideen Rodiat said; “It was an educative experience. I learnt that Nigerian culture and heritage should be preserved. The Osun Grove is a world-recognized heritage site as captured by UNESCO.

“I learnt there is an annual Osun-Oshogbo festival which holds in the month of August. It is called Arugba in Yoruba. A virgin maiden will be chosen from the family of the present king of the town to carry sacrifices to the river goddess. While the maiden carries the sacrifice, she will be escorted and she mustn’t talk and the calabash mustn’t fall, otherwise, it will mean a bad omen for the kingdom.”

The Vice Chancellor of Adeleke University, Prof. Solomon Adebola has admonished creative writers not only to highlight problems but to also proffer solutions, to the perennial problems affecting the nation’s maritime sector in their literary works.

Prof. Adebola made this call while speaking at the opening ceremony of the Maritime Writes Project 3-day Creative Writing Bootcamp, in Adeleke University, Ede, Osun State, yesterday.

The Vice-Chancellor, who was represented by the Dean of Arts, Prof. Adegbite Tobalase, expressed optimism that increasing the literature for children on the maritime industry will not only stimulate the career interest of younger ones in the sector but equally begin a discussion on solutions to recurring shipping challenges in the nation.

His words: “Over 70 percent of the goods imported into the country comes via the sea and this underscores the importance of maritime to the nation. In the course of the training, some of the challenges confronting the sector have been discussed and we are hoping that some of the writers will project these challenges and find lasting solutions to them.”

“As an institution, we are delighted with the high-level turnout of participants and we are hopeful that MWP continues to hold this programme annually in the university.”

“MWP is building awareness about maritime and this is needed to ensure more people take up careers in the sector. This industry holds a lot of opportunities for children and youths. There is also a lot that can be achieved via writing and the MWP harps on these benefits. The project is a two-way thing centred on maritime and also grooming people on creative writing.”

Prof. Adebola, however, opined that holding the 3-day event in Adeleke University avails the institution a unique opportunity to showcase the state-of-the-art infrastructure and conducive learning environment to participants coming from various parts of the country.

“I’m sure that most of the participants are wowed by what they have seen at the University. We also feel that it is an avenue for the university to give back to society by hosting this event. As indigenes and residents of Osun State participate in the Creative Writing Bootcamp, the university sees this as a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for the budding writers that this project promotes,” he said.

Speaking on the theme of this year’s event “Maritime Heritages”, Prof. Adebola described Osun Groove as one of the maritime heritages that younger ones should be exposed to in the nation.

According to him, several people feel that the Osun groove has to do with witchcraft and other spiritual things, but it portends more because it represents the culture of the Osun people.

“The name Osun and Oshogbo came from the settling of a group of people who discovered a body of water that represented a source of livelihood. Historically, these people had gravitated to Osun/ Oshogbo because they were in search of water,” he said.

He equally explained that the Osun groove aptly qualifies as a maritime heritage because it has an annual event that attracts national and international tourists for a weeklong event every August.

“Younger ones should be aware that the Osun groove is a maritime heritage that not only exists, but also provides a revenue-generating platform as it attracts tourists yearly. There have been several stories about the Osun groove but participants will realize that the place is peaceful and promotes the culture of the Oshogbo people,” he added.

Participants in the Osun MWP Creative Writing Bootcamp are scheduled to visit the Osun groove later today as part of activities lined-up for the 3-day event..