Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq late Monday hosted the state contingent that won the recently concluded president’s schools debate in Lagos, saying the victory shows a significant turnaround in the public school system in the state.

The Governor said the scholarship award to the victorious students would be gazetted for posterity so that future administrations would respect what represents a modest reward the state can offer the children who have brought honour to the state as a means of encouraging others to do well.

AbdulRazaq had earlier issued a press statement congratulating the team for the feat and pledging the government's readiness to sponsor their education to the university level anywhere in Nigeria.

"We are all excited by what these young students have done. We thanked them earlier and made our pronouncement of giving them scholarship to university level. That will be gazetted so that nobody in the future can deny them that right,” he said when the contingent visited the Government House.

The Governor gave each of the students N500,000 and additional N1m to their teachers — a gesture he hopes would spur other students to study harder and be good ambassadors of the state.

The contingent was led by Chairman for State SUBEB, Prof. Sheu Raheem Adaramaja, accosted by their teachers, parents of the students, and family members.

AbdulRazaq praised the parents of the students and their teachers for the proper upbringing and the effective mentorship ahead of the context, adding that the government will continue to prioritise the welfare of teachers, the entire workforce, as well as promote decent learning environment.

"And for the teachers, I say well done. We have to dig deep to make sure that we sustain your welfare. We know where we are coming from — a period when salaries were not even paid. Sometimes half salaries were paid. But when we started we made sure that workers are getting their salaries as and when due,” he said.

"We started also with the minimum wage whereby nobody earns less than #30,000, and now we have agreed with the labour and we are just finalising the details concerning the local government.”

He commended the efforts of Prof. Adaramaja and his team in ensuring a total turnaround in the state SUBEB, noting that this development alone will stimulate more competition and increase education quality in the public school system.

The six-student Kwara debating team comprises Ajenifuja Quareebullahi Sheu (Ilorin Grammar School JSS); Dunmoye Sheriffdeen (Offa Grammar School JSS); Adisa Robiat Jaji (Government Girls Day JSS Pakata); Mohammed Halimat (United Community Junior Secondary School Ilorin); Agboola Amdalat (Zango Okesuna, JSS Pake); and Apaokagi Fauziyat Ahmad (Government Girls Day JSS Pakata).

Presenting the first-prize trophy to the Governor, Prof Adaramaja said the victory is a product of the government's huge investment in the education sector.

He explained that the students proved their mettle in every stage for them to beat other contenders, especially the host state, Lagos, and Katsina, both in the semifinals and final stages.

Adaramaja commended the patience and understanding the team enjoyed from the parents throughout the period, saying they never hesitated in allowing their children to partake in the vigorous training ahead of the competition .

Mallam Abdul Adisa Jaji, one of the parents, said what the pupils have come out with clearly explains that public schools are not what they used to be, hailing the sincere commitment of the present administration to secure a better future for the school children.

He also thanked the Governor's gesture of rewarding the students' performance with scholarship awards.

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