By Ralph Agbana.
For prioritizing education and making bursary available to students, commendation has come the way of the Senator representing Kogi West Senatorial District, Sunday Karimi, over the lasting educational investment he has established in one of the major towns of the Senatorial district. The Computer-Based Test Centre at the prestigious Titcombe College, Egbe, one of the oldest in Northern Nigeria, is worth over N200m, and it is meant to service students from Kogi, Kwara and Ekiti States who would be writing government approved examinations.
In a statement at the weekend, the Kogi State based Yagba Action Group (YAG), a non-partisan coalition of professionals and concerned citizens from Yagba Federal Constituency of the state, commended Karimi, for making education, which is considered as the key industry of the people, as one of the key focuses of his programmes for his constituents.
The statement, signed by its Vice Chairman, Mr. Dickson Adeyanju, said the 300-capacity Computer-Based Test Centre at Titcombe College, Egbe, and the N300m bursary scheme for students in public tertiary institutions in Nigeria from across the state, are well thought out programmes that have proved Senator Karimi as well focused in his delivery for his people.
Similarly, the group said the initiative of the Sunday Karimi Education Foundation and Tinubu Support Group, to extend educational support beyond the Kogi West Senatorial District, to the two other senatorial districts of East and Central of Kogi State, was the first of it’s kind, to students in public tertiary institutions, by a sitting Senator beyond his/her catchment.
The statement said: “the turnout of 10,000 applications with 10 days left in the registration process not only make this year’s process more competitive and demanding but also indicates a significant lack of financial resources for education among the student population, as more students require financial assistance to cover educational costs. However, YAG noted that this high demand must be considered alongside factors like the bursaries’ effectiveness, awareness of financial aid options, and students’ expectations.
“The high volume of applications suggests that many students face huge financial burdens to accessing education, making bursaries essential for their participation. On this note, YAG commends Distinguished Senator Sunday Karimi for his vision through the institutionalization of the Sunday Karimi Education Foundation, a financial support mechanism to meet the needs of the student population. This will also bridge the socioeconomic disparities in higher education, where students from low-income backgrounds are often underrepresented”, the statement said, adding that “YAG urged the Central Committee in charge of screening of the applicants to ensure a credible, fair, and transparent selection process for all successful applicants”.
The statement noted that the statewide 2025 bursary awards funded by Senator Karimi, targeting 3000 students, is an improvement to the 2024 edition of the scheme, which covered 1000 beneficiary students limited to Kogi West Senatorial District.
On the CBT Centre built by Senator Karimi in collaboration with Titcombe College Old Students Association (TCEOSA), the group described the facility, fully equipped with modern computers, high-speed internet access, uninterrupted power supply, and world-class ICT infrastructure, as a “magnanimously magnificent and visionary project” that has set a new standard in educational advancement in the North Central geopolitical zone, “offering a golden opportunity for potential users to develop essential skills such as digital literacy, critical thinking, adaptability, and communication”.
The statement added, “We urge the students, teachers, and the community; not only those of Titcombe College, Egbe alone but rural students in the adjoining communities to take possession of the facility to bridge the digital gap and grab same opportunities as their urban counterparts in the fields of ICT training, digital innovation, and youth empowerment”.
