Rep Jeremiah Umaru (APC, Akwanga/Nassarawa-Eggon/Wamba Federal Constituency) has presented N10.6 million as cash prizes to the winners of secondary school debate competition in his constituency.
The debate was organised by the Federal Lawmaker for secondary schools across the 35 electoral wards of his constituency and started August 25.
Speaking at the grand finale of the debate in Akwanga Local Government Area (LGA) of Nasarawa State, the lawmaker said that the gesture was part of his blueprint to invest in the youths and promote education.
Umaru said that he was impressed with the level of confidence and the composure of the participants and their sequence in arguing their points.
The lawmaker presented prizes to the best students and best schools who emerged as winners in the competition as well as consolation prizes to all the participating schools.
The Command Science Technical Secondary School Rinze, Akwanga LGA had emerged the overall winner, with Baptist Academy Wamba LGA and Shepherd International College Akwanga as the first and second runners up.
He presented a cheque of N1 million and five laptops to the winner, N700, 000 and three laptops and N500, 000 and two laptops to the first and second runners up respectively.
Umaru had also presented N500, 000 and one laptop to the best speaker, N250, 000 and one laptop to the second speaker and N150, 000 and one laptop to the third speaker at the competition.
He equally presented N200, 000 and educational materials to each to the remaining 32 participating schools.
Umaru explained that the debate would be an annal event aimed at creating network among the students to expose them to standard best practices.
He said that the programme was designed to create a strong network for the students and provide them with a platform to speak to a larger crowd.
“The network they built today will brighten thier academic pursue and strengthen their public speaking techniques in order to achieve thier dreams and aspirations, in the future” he added.
He therefore, promised to continue to initiate programmes in various sector to empower his constituents to justify thier support at the polls.
Also, Abubakar Naralaba, (APC, Awe/Doma/Keana Federal Constituency) lauded his colleague for investing in education of the youths to build their capacities and capabilities to compete with their pairs in other clients.
He said that it was good to know that students from his own state are this good and researchers on their own rights.
Naralaba encouraged Umaru to sustain what he is doing and said that he would also replicate the same thing in his constituency for the overall benefit of the state and the country.
On of the participants, Miracle Danjuma of Baptist Academy Wamba, expressed gratitude to the lawmaker for the mentoring and the opportunity to enrich themselves academically.
She said that that have learned a lot during the camp by their teachers as well as the facilitators and appealed to others to emulate the gesture by the lawmaker by investing in the youths.
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