Journal of Education in Developing Areas (JEDA) Vol. 19, No. 1.

SYSTEM FAILURE IN NIGERIA: EDUCATIONAL POLICY MONITORING AND VALUE REORIENTATION TO THE RESCUE

BY

DR. AKANBI GRACE OLUREMILEKUN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATIONS SCHOOL OF EDUCATION EMMANUEL ALAYANDE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION OYO

Abstract This paper discussed system failure in Nigeria and how effective policy monitoring and value reorientation could help solve this problem. Brief examination of Nigerian and African traditional education was done to establish its relevance at time like this. It identified some of the systems such as education, the Nigeria Police Force, Power Holding Company of Nigeria, Nigeria Telecommunication Ltd, transport sector and the health sector; and their level of decay. It then suggested the importance of effective monitoring of educational policies at the level of implementation and reorientation of the citizenry towards embracing positive values in our culture and traditional education.

March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1).

Introduction Every society in the world, whether developed or developing, has some form of ethical practice and inbuilt mechanism of operation to hold the body polity together. Those mechanisms are formed into a sort of organization, institution or establishments responsible for the smooth running of such society. The success or otherwise of these mechanisms determine the extent to which the society will develop. Education has been identified as an instrument par excellence in making this function. Nigeria as a nation is not left out of this arrangement, hence the establishment of such institutions. However, recent events in the country show that nearly all of these institutions and establishments have failed in their bid to meet the needs and aspirations of Nigerians and Nigeria as a nation; and are already been substituted. They are: a) Educational institutions which are tagged public or government schools replaced or displaced by private educational institutions at all levels. b) The Nigeria Police (NPF) emergence of Cultural Police such as Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), Egbesu Boys, Bakasi Boys and Arewa Youth Forum (AYF) Nigeria Telecommunication (NITEL) displaced by the Global System of Mobile telecommunication popularly called GSM. c) Power Holding Company of Nigerias (PHCN) - PHCN failure has brought power generating sets to almost all the homes especially in the urban centers resulting to air pollution and unprecedented health hazards. d) Health institutions - Health institutions have not lived to expectation and this has led to the emergence of private hospitals and maternity centers that are out to exploit their clients. e) Public Works Department (PWD) - Young jobless boys patching and mending roads is a common feature on Nigeria highways now, while those employed for this purpose are found under trees in the Works ministry discussing or sleeping. f) Family Institutions have also failed - Our youths are more interested in foreign culture and parents are not helping the situation. Schools are full of cultists and prostitutes. g) Political Institutions - The establishment of the National Orientation Agency did not play remarkable role in the attitude of politicians towards elections. Coupled with this, is the erosion of the value system by bribery, corruption and moral decadence. Things that should attract shame are being applauded and it is becoming fashionable to be corrupt. But the question is why is it that basic

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March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1). human essentialities refuse to function in some societies but function in many other nations of the world? What do we do? This is why it becomes necessary to examine few of these systems and discuss where the process of failure started and what could be done through educational policy monitoring and re-orientation of our value system to rescue the situation. Brief Examination of Mass Failure of Systems in Nigeria Educational Institutions According to Fafunwa (1974:17) although Nigeria consists of many ethnic groups and societies each with its own culture and tradition, they all have common educational aims and objectives with varying methods to achieve them. The aim of traditional African education is multilateral and the end objective is to produce an individual who is honest, respectable, skilled, cooperative and conforms to the social order of the day. In traditional Nigerian society, all parents want their children to be upright, honest, kind and helpful to others. Fafunwa further identified seven aspects of this traditional education as: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. To develop the childs latent physical skills; To develop character. To inculcate respect for elders and those in position of authority; To develop intellectual skills; To acquire specific vocational training and to develop a healthy attitude towards honest labour; 6. To develop a sense of belonging and to participate actively in family and community affairs; 7. To understand, appreciate and promote the cultural heritage of the community at large. It should be noted also that, functionalism is the main guiding principle of this education with the individual having his/her role to play towards the development of the society. With the coming of western education however, things started changing but unfortunately, the changes were not properly monitored, harnessed and tailored towards the realization of traditional aims and objectives that would lead to genuine development of the nation. Okonjo (2007) quoted by Sule-Kano (2007) rightly observed that Nigeria has inherited a colonial educational system which has failed to cater adequately for the needs and aspirations of most Nigerians. This according to her is reflected in the general low quality of life in the country, the distribution of indigenous holistic system of education, culture and www.jeda-uniport.com Page 2

March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1). civilization. The current educational system which we inherited from the colonial period is inadequate in several respects. The defects include the philosophy of education, the structure and content of curricula at the various levels of the educational system, the objectives and goals of education, access to education in terms of space and financial resources and funding. The National Forum for Policy Development (NFPD) in her 2007 observation access to education submitted that; At the pre-primary level, there is no government involvement in the supervision and funding of education of children aged between 2-5 years; At the primary level, children who should be in school are about sixteen (16) million but only 1million are in school, representing 6.25%; At the secondary school level only 6.5 million (17.1%) out of the 24 million that should be in school are in school, leaving 17.5 million (72.9%) out. At the tertiary level, of the estimated total of 17.7 million only 1.5 million (8.5%) are currently enrolled as students. (Sule-Kano & Edeh, 2007) This implies that a total of over 56.7 million representing 73.1% of school age population are out of school, a reflection of the fact that Nigeria is not a literate society contrary to the view of the great Greek philosopher Plato, who believed that education should take paramount position in any society. According to him, educated people are easy to govern and there can be justice and peace in the society only when people are educated and if each segment is doing what it is supposed to do. Examination malpractice is no longer news; both parents and learners are involved and discuss it with impunity. It has gotten to an alarming rate and 324 secondary schools were blacklisted by the Federal Government recently as centers of public examination. The Federal Ministry of Education has also planned compulsory integrity training for examiners, supervisors and invigilators because of malpractice and has decided that whoever fails the examination will not qualify to be an examiner for the ministry. Education has failed to instill the culture of communal interest; rather it has produced selfish and self-centered people and greedy leaders. The Nigeria Police: Police force in any nation is established to enforce law and order. They are to protect the populace from danger and harassment; and with the presence of police security seems guaranteed. What would life be like without police? This question www.jeda-uniport.com Page 3

on (a) (b) (c) (d)

March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1). was answered with what happened in 1977 when 18,000 police officers went on strike in the Brazilian city of Recife, leaving its more than 1 million residents without police. As reported in Awake (2002:3), in five chaotic days, the crime rate had tripled and eight banks have been robbed. Gangs have run wild through a shopping mall and driven through upper-class neighbourhoods firing guns. And no one was obeying the traffic laws. The crime wave had tested the limit of the morgue, gunshots and stabbed victims flooded the large state hospital, stretched out on hallway floors. One can be sure that the situation may not be different if it were to be in Nigeria.

The British colonization of the different societies that presently constitute Nigeria started in 1861 from the territory of Lagos. By 1903, the British colonialists had succeeded in colonizing all the nearly four hundred nationalities in the country (Otite, 1990 in Alemika & Chukwuma, 2007). The colonialists according to them executed the colonial project employing violence and fraud or deceits through the police. The establishment of the police forces in colonial Nigeria therefore reflected administrative policies and concerns. Police forces were established along the line dictated by the indirect rule policy.

There is the need therefore to recognize and comprehend three important historical factors that have shaped the development and character of the Nigeria police force and police public relations in Nigeria. According to Alemika (2007), first colonial conquest of Nigerian nationalities took place piecemeal over a long period (18611903). As a community was conquered a British colonial presence was established by creating a police force for the territory. Second, violence and fraud were employed in the conquest of the nationalities and; police forces under various names were established and employed as instruments of violence and oppression against the indigenous population. Third, given the character of colonial rule, police force was the instrument used to sustain the alien domination, so it may be convenient to say that colonialism has also entrenched itself in the Nigeria Police Force. Sad enough, the Nigeria Police Force is taking Nigeria to colonial era again if the recent request by Nigeria from the British government is anything to go by. The Federal Government has asked the British Government to assist it in restructuring the Nigeria Police Force over insecurity in Nigeria at the just concluded www.jeda-uniport.com Page 4

March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1). Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Uganda (November, 2007).

Corruption and extortion are widespread among the members of Nigeria Police Force and have soiled their image. While corruption is endemic in segments of Nigerian society, it is particularly objectionable among the police because it is their occupational responsibility to prevent and work at its elimination. An article titled Make Begging Plate part of Police Uniform was published sometime in the Sunday Punch of February 11, 2007 and described the police as beggars on the highway who have lost their integrity. It quoted in part; The big shots stay behind while using the recruits as cover. On the highway . . . they simply beg for money. Begging and begging all the time while inflicting hardship on road users. What is left? Just add begging plate to their uniform to complete their Babi-Allah show. Police brutality is another cankerworm in the security system. The police in Nigeria frequently acted outside the rule of law. Often, they take laws into their own hands, maiming, killing and detaining people arbitrarily and with impunity. They are ready to kill once the complainants pocket is bulging enough. Power Holding Company of Nigeria: (PHCN) National Electric Power Authority (NEPA - PHCN) was created by the Federal Government Decree No. 24 of 1972 consequent upon the merger of Electricity Corporation of Nigeria (ECN) and Niger Dams Authority (NDA). By that decree, PHCN was mandated to maintain an efficient, coordinated and economical system of electricity supply to all parts of the Federation. With that provision, the four basic functions of the authority cover generation, transmission, distribution and marketing of electricity. But an average Nigerian can not say that PHCN has fulfilled any of its function. The PHCN on the other hand has claimed that the vandalisation of gas pipeline that evacuates gas from the Niger Delta to the gas thermal stations was responsible for the energy mess. Coupled with this is our maintenance culture, mass of generating equipments are out of date and turn around maintenance by successive government have not yielded the expected results. The table below shows the degenerating level of the power generating company
Table 1: Power Plants and Generation Capacities.

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Station Type Inauguration date Installed MW Afam Thermal 1978 1992 710 Delta Thermal 1966 1990 912 Sapele Thermal 1978 1981 1,020 Egbin Thermal 1985 1987 1,320 Ijora Thermal 1978 60 Oji Thermal 1956 30 Kainji Hydro 1968 1978 580 Jebba Hydro 1983 1984 570 Shiroro Hydro 1989 - 1990 600 Geregu Thermal 2007 414 AES Thermal 2001 270 Agip Okpai Thermal 2005 480 Rivers Omoku Thermal 2006 150 Ajaokuta Thermal Source: Bureau of Public Enterprise and PHCN (Punch March 13, 2007 p. 34) Current MW 85 366 62 243 445 339 281 137 191.8 424 56 63

Available data from the Bureau of Public Enterprises in 2006 estimated economic losses from blackouts at about 1 billion US dollars annually. Families who could afford it now make do with generators. Should this continue? Hardly will you pick a newspaper in Nigeria without finding 1 or 2 articles complaining about PHCN. Nigeria Telecommunication (NITEL) The communication sector is not spared of rot. The era of looking for vehicle to carry ladder for repairs on your line is gone courtesy of Global System of Mobile Telecommunication (GSM). The GSM also has not been spared of the failure. We are becoming used to phrases like sorry, your call can not be completed, please try again later, the number you dialed/ called is not available at the moment, please try again later, the number you called does not exist/available on the directory/network, check the number and dial again the number you called is switched off. Despite all of this, there is, at least a measure of relief in communicating with people in most part of the nation. Before the advent of GSM, NITEL officials had turned themselves to tin gods to few Nigerians who could afford telephone lines. Most often you pay bills you did not incur by yourself due to tapping by officials and other fraudulent elements. But the Nigerian factor is gradually setting into www.jeda-uniport.com Page 6

March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1). the GSM operation. This is because education has failed to instill morality and honesty in citizens, and it is no longer fashionable to be upright.

Transport Sector Transportation system is a major factor in the economy of any nation. Effective movement of goods and people from one location to the other is dependent on the transportation system. Though there are four major means of transportation road, rail, air and water there is none that is functioning to the level expected. Bad roads, poor water ways, abandoned rail roads because of some powerful people who want to begin large scale haulage business and purchase of over used and rejected aircrafts by airliners. In the Punch of Tuesday, April 25, 2006 there was a screaming headline Plane, car crashes make Nigeria major disaster prone Country According to the report experts mapping the effects of natural and technological disasters on international trade say Nigeria is the ninth most disaster prone country in the world. Road accidents are no longer news, people perish on daily basis, yet our leaders could afford stacking millions of Naira in their accounts ready to be spent on things that are not beneficial to the society.

Health Sector Nothing less has happened to the health sector. The decay in the health care system in Nigeria, in the opinion of Awe (2006) needs no gainsaying. It is evident in the way clinics spring up everywhere, doctors are always on strike, teaching hospitals operate without functional theatres, doctors transfuse HIV-infected blood and surgeons forget surgical instruments in patients tummy (Awe, 2006). Government officials themselves seem to have lost faith in the system. Often you read in newspapers or you hear in the daily news about officials that were sick and flown abroad for treatment. Drugs that were meant for patients at subsidized rate in government hospitals find their way into private pharmaceutical stores at exorbitant prices for whoever could afford it. Nigeria was a dumping ground for fake and expired drugs leading to mass untimely deaths. If not for the effort of National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the whole system would have been in total mess. Doctors in government hospitals refer patients to their private clinics after consultation in the government hospitals, leaving patients at their mercy. The Primary Health Care system was paralyzed by shortage of www.jeda-uniport.com Page 7

March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1). health workers, location of hospitals to the benefiting communities, unavailability of drug, electricity and water. The World Health Organizations world health reports for 2006 draws attention to Nigeria as one of the countries that are critically in short of health workers. The major reason for this shortage of health workers in Nigeria is their migration to countries where they can be paid better, have access to better facilities and have a better living condition. Towards A Nation Where Everything Works Switzerland has been described as a nation where everything works and this acronym is real. One may be tempted to argue that this became possible because it is a developed nation with low population, however it can also be argued that it did not get to that level the same year that it started as a nation. The nation must have passed through its own development process also. But one thing is sure; the level of literacy (99%) is high, and it is a factor in making everything work. Below is the information on Health and Education in Switzerland.

Life Expectancy Female 83.5 years Male 77.7 years Infant Mortality rate 4 deaths per 1,000 live births (2006 estimate) Population per physician _ 284 people (2004 estimate) Population per hospital bed 167 people (2004 estimate) Literacy rate 99% (1995) Number of years of compulsory schooling 9 years Number of students per teacher in the primary school 14 students (Encarta Premium, 2007). In Nigeria, it seems as if nothing works and the future looks gloomy with no hope in sight. The present state of things in Nigeria calls for conscious and concerted effort towards monitoring educational policies. It was rightly observed during the workshop on National Education Reform in January 11, 2007 that the philosophy on which the current educational policy is based is not suitable for the development of the Nigerian society. At the workshop it was agreed that we need an indigenous system of education that incorporates the best aspect of other traditions without being just imitative. To address this deficiency, the forum observed that the www.jeda-uniport.com Page 8

March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1). curricula content should reflect the Nigerian pre-colonial development, the relationship between economic policy and educational development, and the history of Nigeria and Africa and the imperatives of African freedom. To meet the needs of national development and to avoid continual system failure, the educational system must among others accomplish the following goals: 1. build a knowledge based society that accepts the primacy of intellectual capital; 2. enable Nigeria to attain a high level of scientific and technological development within the shortest time 3. incorporate indigenous civilization, though systems and models of development that will replace the current values of corruption, selfishness and other social vices with moral values of honesty, respect, integrity, family and community ties; 4. generate within the shortest possible time the quantum of human capital that would serve the total development needs of Nigeria; 5. maximize the usage of existing educational facilities; 6. formally incorporate and develop the pre-primary level into the educational system; and 7. develop quaternary educational sector as a tool for effective socio-economic advancement of Nigeria. (Sule-Kano & Edeh 2007 ) One important area however, if we want the educational system to achieve the above goals that will eventually affect every other system positively, is the need for adequate monitoring of the educational policy at the level of implementation. There is a lot of decay in the educational sector and those in charge seem not to be bothered especially as regards frequent evaluation of policies. For example, the 6-33-4 system could not be seen as successful, especially in the aspect of the 3years of post junior secondary school. Students that were unable to continue in the senior secondary school were not catered for because few technical colleges were available. There are technical equipment imported for this purpose but most technical education teachers do not know how to operate them. Some of these equipments are still in some schools rotting away or being pilfered by some teachers. The soundness of the educational system determines to a very large extent how effective the other system will be, whether political, economic, health or social. This is because education sector is the foundation as well as the building blocks for other sectors. Individuals that are in other sectors must have had a taste of

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March , 2011 JOURNAL OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING AREAS (JEDA) VOL.19 (1). education to some level but, have they been properly seasoned as to know what to do and what not to do in their various duty posts? It is important to know that the solution to our dilemma is somewhere wrapped around the engine that drives the worlds progression Self discipline. Self discipline is a character trait that helps people evaluate what they are doing, stop doing what is harmful and start doing what is constructive. This should be embedded in every system and in fact be inculcated from infancy through all facets of life. Re-orientation of our value system is another major area to forestall system failure. This should be included in our educational policy and in the curricula. Patriotism, obedience, tolerance, honesty, morality, hard work, discipline, integrity are some of the values to be emphasized rather than laziness, selfishness, corruption, greediness and other vices. Emphasis should be laid on functionalism rater than carrying certificates about and not being able to perform. Plato, the great Greek philosopher advocated that kings/rulers should be philosophers and well educated. This would afford them the opportunity of understanding what governance entails not accumulation of wealth and embezzlement of public funds but self sacrifice, commitment, dedication, focus and humility. There has to be a change of mindset which will lead to general transformation of the individual and the society at large. Many public officers and political leaders in Nigeria are corrupt, selfish and disregard public opinion and even the law at will. President YarAdua in an interview with a Punch correspondent established the fact that things are not going the way they should in Nigeria and there is the need for a change. According to him; Nations and the people and societies that achieve greatness and solve problems, do it through hard work and determination. All of us have been going out, we have seen how others are working. These are some of the things that we have to face as a nation. . . I will assure u that if I have the opportunity to serve for 8 years, If I am able to solve the power and energy problem in this country, and able to reverse the crisis in the education sector and help standardize the education sector and begin the process of rail capacity for mass transit and the development of the solution of the Niger-Delta problem, if that is all I do, I will be satisfied. (2007:39). www.jeda-uniport.com Page 10

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Civics as a subject should be reintroduced and this time around it should cut across all levels of education. Pupils should be taught conformity to rules and regulations of the society without exceptions, and should imbibe the culture of being their brothers keepers rather than being self centered. Conclusion and Recommendation It has been established through various media that most systems have failed in Nigeria, but hope is not lost if there is proper monitoring of implementation of educational policies so as to achieve what is set to achieve. Reawakening the value in our culture and traditional education and reorientation of the entire citizenry toward imbibing culture of honesty, dignity in labour and unity will also go a long way. Nigeria is still in the process of national reconstruction and therefore needs a very sound system of education, the cooperation and commitment of all Nigerians. REFERENCES Adetubo, L. (2007). Make Begging Plate part of Police Uniform Sunday Punch February 11 p.16 Adeyeye, J. (2006). Plane, Car crashes make Nigeria major Disaster-Prone Country The Punch. Tuesday April 25, p.3 Alemika, E. E.O.(1993) .Analysis of Police and Policing in http://www.cleen.org/policing.%20driver%20of%20change.pdf. Nigeria

Awe, O. (2006) Brain Drain Strips Health Sector Bare The Punch Friday April 14 p.3 Deji-Folutide, B. (2006) Education Issues: A society wallow in decay. The Punch April 25, p.40 Fafunwa, A.B. (1974) History of Education in Nigeria. London: George Allen & Unwin. Federal Government of Nigeria (2007) Why we blacklisted 324 Schools. The Punch Monday February 11, p.16 Microsoft Student with Encarta Premium (2007) Switzerland Facts and Figures. NEPA (PHCN) http://www.nepanigeria.org Nwankwo, C. (2007). Insecurity: YarAdua invites Britain to assist Police The Punch Tuesday November 27, p.2. www.jeda-uniport.com Page 11

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Punch (2007) Why Blackout Persists (Stakeholders) Tuesday March 13, p.34 Sule-Kano, A. &Edeh, F. (2007). Communiqu of the National Forum for Policy Development Workshop on National Education Reforms, held at the Auditorium National Universities Commission Abuja, 11th January 2007 Watch Tower Bibles & Tract Society (2002) The Police, why Do We Need Them? Vol. 83 No.13, pp.3-12 YarAdua, U. M. (2007). We need to Create Wealth. Punch. Wednesday March 14, p.39. Zhawa, A. (2007) Malpractice: Compulsory Integrity Training for Examiners Punch. Friday April 20, p.38.

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