By BERNADETTE IDALU
April 25, 2024
Secondary school students have been encouraged to be upbeat with reading to unleash full potential during the “World Book and Copyright Day,” celebrated at the Edo State Library Board premises, Secretariat Building, Benin City.
Speaking with the Nigerian Observer Newspaper at the event, which took place April 23, 2024, with the theme, “Read your way,” Director, Edo State Library Board, Mr Efosa Egharevba, said the board in collaboration with its partners, the Nigerian Copyright Commission and the Nigerian Library Association, Edo State chapter, infused the addition, “Read your way to the top,” to draw the attention of people, especially students whose schools have been earmarked for induction into the “Reading Brigade” to serve as ambassadors who influence their peers and co-students to realize the beauty of reading books.
Dr Sola Okunkpolo, Executive Director, Edo State Agency for Mass Education who mingled and interacted with students to remain resolute at actualizing on their life’s goals, also advised them to abide by the simple principle of either “shutting their legs” or “zip up” and read their books, whenever they get distracted to harness the power of the “Read a book; save your life” project.
Dr Sola, who posited that this was the ideal time to reawaken the spirit of reading, informed participants drawn from Oredo Girls Secondary School and Imaguero Girls College Benin City, as well as secondary school readers and users of the Library facility who joined the celebration to latch onto the power of their digital devices to access and read books to update themselves on latest trends aside being to date through having vital information at the finger tips to nip and counter rising incidents of misinformation and fake news.
She encouraged participants to download any e-book readers to their phones to engage with whenever they felt the urge to gossip, and recommended some e-book sites to get educational and other books of choice, such as “pdfdrive.com; z-lib and Moon reader.”
She noted that there is a big disconnect between reading and mass education, hence the growing need to bring back everybody, not only our children. Adults, she pointed out, should take their time to read. They could read newspapers, books and pamphlets.
Director, Public Affairs, Nigerian Copyright Commission, Funmilayo Adewale, who stood in for the commission’s Director General, announced that as part of the occasion and in celebration of Professor Wole Soyinka’s 90th birthday coming up July 13, this year, would “Make copies of Soyinka’s books and other front-line titles available to 90 public schools and use the opportunity to establish more copyright and creative clubs in those schools to promote respect for copyright.”
Asemota Peace, a student of Oredo Girls Secondary School, told the Nigerian Observer newspaper, “I feel so happy to be a part of the event because I really learnt a lot. I say a very big thank you to everyone who spoke to us.”
By Tobore Jerome
April 28, 2024
By Tracy Ohovwore
April 28, 2024
By Agency Report
April 28, 2024
April 27, 2024 at 10:12 PM
March 12, 2024 at 09:21 AM
The Nigerian Observer is a daily newspaper published in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria, since 1968 by the Bendel Newspapers Company Limited (BNCL) and is owned by the Edo State Government
Subscribe our newsletter for latest world news. Let''s stay updated!
© 2024 Nigerian Observer “ All Right Reserved.