The Chairman Federal House of Representatives committee on Public Affairs and member representing Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, has commanded President Muhammadu Buhari over the appointment of Professor Goodwill Obioma as Registrar/Chief Executive of the National Examinations Council (NECO).
President Muhammad Buhari had on 23rd May, 2020, approved the appointment of Prof. Obioma, a native of Bende, Abia State.
His appointment was contained in a statement issued in Minna by the NECO Head, Information and Public Relations Division, Azeez Sani.
Rep. Kalu in a statement signed by him on Monday, described Prof. Obioma’s appointment as “a square peg in a square hole”, stated that it was one of the best appointments made by President Buhari, owing to the wealth of experience of the Prof. Obioma.
“As far as executive appointments go, none has been as spot on as His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari’s appointment of Prof. Godswill Obioma as Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of NECO.
“This appointment comes at a time when NECO confronts several challenges seeking to undermine its operations, including the tasks of repairing the integrity of the examination body, solving infrastructural and technological deficits as well as fulfilling expectations to improve the turnaround time of examination results”, Rep. Kalu said.
The Spokesman of the House of Representatives noted that, “working as a key player in several government committees and panels on education development in the country, Professor Obioma has contributed immensely in formulating education policies in Nigeria in the last two decades with a record of achievements too vast to enumerate”.
Aside being the immediate past Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Obioma had also made great impacts in education research and other notable agencies, both local and foreign.
“He has served as the Chairman of Nigeria Education Roadmap of the Federal Ministry of Education and Executive Secretary, Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council.
“Internationally, he has consulted for UNESCO, UNDP, WORLD BANK, DFID and UNICEF, having served in various delegate and leadership roles including President of UNESCO International Bureau of Education (IBE); Member, International Experts Meeting on Key Curricular and Learning Issues in the Post 2015 Education and Development Agenda held in Geneva; and Member Nigerian Delegation to the adoption of the SDG in Education in 2014 in Nakoya Japan”, Rep. Kalu noted.
Kalu said, Obioma’s new responsibility was an intricate dance which will require the innovativeness and insight of a leadership possessing extensive local and international experience.
He stressed that, “Prof. Obioma’s breadth of experience, his wealth of academic achievements, as well as his far-reaching contributions to education policy reforms in national and global contexts immediately distinguish him as the right fit for the job- the square peg in a square hole”.
He described Prof. Obioma as “a distinguished product of Abia State” who “has spearheaded a number of policy reforms and institutional changes in Nigeria’s educational curriculum including; the 9-year Basic Education Curriculum, the Senior Secondary Education Curriculum, the 34 Senior Secondary Entrepreneur/Trade subjects, the 2014 Edition of the National Policy on Education, among others”.
“It is therefore with unreserved delight that myself and several other leaders of Abia State in Abuja, across party lines, express our support for President Muhammadu Buhari’s wisdom in appointing Prof. Obioma to lead the new and improved NECO, even as we prepare to host a reception event for the new Registrar/CEO in the coming days”, the statement added.
