The Anambra State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs Chinyere Esther Onyekesi, has urged students to prioritise character over academic certificates, own their future and choose their friends wisely.
Onyekesi gave the advice during the maiden Independence Day celebration of Laphils International Academy in Awka, where she said, “Grades may open doors, but character keeps one there.”
The commissioner, who said she was delighted to honour the school’s invitation because children were central to her mandate, encouraged the students to acquire at least one skill outside their course of study.
She said acquiring practical skills would help students avoid negative influences such as cultism, drug abuse and get-rich-quick lifestyles, while urging them to stay close to God, remain focused and make responsible choices.
Onyekesi commended the school’s proprietress and management for complementing government efforts in the education sector.
She noted that the administration of Governor Chukwuma Soludo appreciated private initiatives that contribute to the development of education in the state, urging individuals and organisations not to wait for government to do everything.
“Do not wait for government to do everything,” she said.
In her address, the proprietress of Laphils International Academy, Mrs Phina Mefor, described the celebration as historic, being the school’s first Independence Day celebration.
Mefor said the theme of the event, “The Nigeria We Dream Of,” was chosen to remind the students that a better tomorrow begins with a dream nurtured through education, good character, creativity, responsibility and service.
She said the school was established with a clear purpose of providing an environment where children could learn with confidence, discover their abilities and understand that leadership was about responsibility and service rather than position.
“Laphils International Academy is building with a clear purpose—to provide an environment where children learn with confidence, discover their abilities, and understand that leadership is about responsibility and service, not position,” she said.
Mefor urged the students to understand that they were not too young to dream about a better Nigeria or contribute to its development through learning, kindness and doing what is right.
