The immediate past Director-General of the Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency (CRSPHCDA), Dr. Betta Edu, has paid school fees for 753 pupils in Adadama Political Ward of Abi Local Government Area of Cross River State.
Speaking in Calabar, Dr. Edu, in her usual magnanimity, support, love, and passion to contribute to the Spirit of a new Cross River anchored by her political father, the Governor of the state, Sir Ben Ayade and to ensure a brighter future for the children who are leaders of tomorrow, explained that the project which she started three years ago has become a yearly routine for her.
She said that she was fully aware of the devastating effect war can have on the lives of people and how constant conflicts have reduced the economy of her people to nothing, leading to massive dropout of children from school.
The immediate past Director-General of CRSPHCDA who thanked the Governor, Sen Prof Ben Ayade for giving her the opportunity in the last tenure to serve the State and thereby equally having the privilege to be of great help to her people especially the children, has also made a promise to extend this goodwill and kindness to other waring communities in Abi LGA if only they would be ready to maintain and embrace peace in return.
Propelled by the famous saying of the Governor and her political mantra, “We don’t give because we have enough, we give because we care enough”, Dr. Edu stated, “I want to reproduce Several Sen Ben Ayade in Cross River. My aim is to ensure that every child is given a chance and parents who are facing the challenge of returning their wards back to school can be relieved of such pressure”.
She further explained that her gesture of paying school fees and other charges for the children was completely far from being political, stressing that “this is not political, it’s my give back to God and humanity.
I know the challenges most parents face sending their children to school, I know the importance of Primary Education as the foundation for every child. It’s not because I have enough, but it gives me sleepless nights to hear that children drop out of school, most times I cry in secret when I can’t help. I want to support them by giving them a future and a stable education,” Dr. Edu asserted.
“What I’m doing is keeping with the principles of my father Sen Ben Ayade to support a new generation of Cross Riverians that will drive the industrialization Revolution in the State, my desire is to assist parents, Edu concluded”.
The beautiful wife of Adadama also got more than 50 tertiary institution students on her scholarship list.
Primary schools whose pupils are beneficiaries of the Dr. Betta Edu scholarship are summarized thus; PCN Primary School Ekpon with a total number of 260 pupils/beneficiaries, PCN Extension Isong Inyang Primary School has 37 pupils/beneficiariSt. Berndas Ibalebo Primary School with 187 pupils/beneficiaries, Government Primary School Atani has a total of 112 pupils/beneficiaries, and PCN Imina Primary School with a total of 130 pupils/beneficiary.
Individual beneficiaries (private schools) has a total of 24 pupil, making a sum total of 753 pupils/beneficiaries.