Former President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, Archbishop Felix Alaba Job, has blamed successive governments for ignoring genuine calls to review the nation’s education curriculum.
The clergy noted that the failure to reform the education system has created a generation that is unable to distinguish right from wrong.
He raised the concern in an interview with journalists on Saturday at the 13th convocation ceremony of Veritas University, Abuja, where he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Letters (Hon.D.LITT) by the management of the institution.
The clergy, who was the former Archbishop Emeritus of Ibadan, stressed that removing subjects like history from the curriculum undermines national identity.
He said that despite warnings to leaders since the 1980s to do the right thing, government inaction has persisted.
The religious leader said: “In 1984, my message to the nation was that if our educational system remained what it was, sooner or later, our children would not be able to know the difference between what is right and what is wrong. And it has come to pass.
“The point is that the Yorubas have a proverb that if your neighbour is eating a frog, and you do not warn him if you keep quiet because he’s just your neighbour, the noise from his throat will not allow you to sleep.
“We have spoken to the government. But unfortunately, governments did not take heed. And therefore, it is not just the curriculum. It is the spirit behind the curriculum that matters.
“When you remove, for instance, history from education, what do you want to tell us? That we should forget who we are? There is a need for the government to take action where it is necessary.
“For some of us, we are on our way out. I call myself quarter two. I was a pupil teacher as far back as 1959. And then I went on, even up to university, and I came to teach. So let me tell you, the government has injured the essence of education and needs to amend it.”
Job, who became a bishop five years after his priestly ordination at the young age of 33, also dismissed allegations of corruption against religious leaders.
According to him, neither those in government nor outside of it are satisfied with the current state of affairs, adding that the dissatisfaction stems from a shared concern for humanity.
He urged the government to address the spiritual and moral deficiencies plaguing Nigeria’s education system.
He added, “We have tried to remove God from our educational system. And some of us that have the courage to begin to say religious leaders are the ones who cause this. It is not true religious leaders.
“We are not talking about those who only use religion to make money. But religious leaders, true religious leaders, cannot do without ethics. We are not talking about those who look for their daily bread by calling themselves different names, giving themselves positions in life which they do not have.”
The cleric, who appreciated the university for honouring him, also noted that more needs to be done to improve the university system.
Speaking, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Hyacinth Ichoku, said the institution has performed excellently in the past year, both on the national and international stage.
Among the events won, according to the VC, were the African Telecommunications Union Innovation Challenge in Nairobi, won by students of the Software Engineering Department, the Commonwealth Universities Debating Championship held in Rwanda, the Pan African Universities Debating Championship, and the AI Quiz, which was won by Veritas University, among others.
Catholic Archbishop of the Abuja Diocese, Most Rev. Ignatius Kaigama, called on the graduating students to contribute positively to the development of the country, stressing the need for them to be pacesetters in their communities, especially in this era of abundant information but an acute shortage of wisdom.
