[font=Lucida Sans Unicode][/font] [sup][/sup]Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President, Aminu
Maigari, Cross River State Deputy Governor, Efiok
Cobham, several members of the Cross River State
Executive Council, the Obong of Calabar, Chairmen
of all the Eighteen Local Government Councils and
Chairmen of Educational Boards in the State have all spoken on the need to curb violence and ignorance
in the country as the 1 GAME campaign unveiled its
much talked about ‘Education defeats Violence’
programme on Monday. In an event that took place in Calabar, the Cross
RiverState capital, Maigari in a pre-recorded
message advocated for respect in the fight against
violence, saying: “The 1 GAME campaign is a
voluntary organization that decides to educate
Nigerians on how to develop and conduct themselves and must be respected by everyone.” Deputy Governor, Cobham in another recorded
message called on the entire public to join in the
fight against violence by uniting strongly with the 1
GAME campaign as it seeks to create a platform for
children in Nigeria to gain a better future. Obong
of Calabar and ruler of the Efik Kingdom, Edidem Ekpo Okon Abasi Otu V in his message, clamoured
for a collective effort in the fight against violence
and a better future for Nigerian children. In other key messages, Chairman of the Forum of
Local Government Council Chairmen in Cross River
State, Emil Inyang called on disadvantaged parents
to send their vulnerable children to school by
saying that apart from being less violent, a girl who
completes basic education is three times less likely to contract HIV, while the Chairman of the State
Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Joseph
Ebam who made a similar call added that a child
born to a literate mother is 50% more likely to
survive pass the age of 5 years. 1 GAME founder, Philip Obaji while speaking said the
‘Education defeats Violence’ programme became
necessary because the organization discovered that
most people who were involved in all sorts of
violent acts including sports were illiterates who
lacked basic education, and so it became necessary to deal with the basic problem of violence which he
described as “lack of education.” “We did a baseline survey in three states and
discovered that 90% of those who will pick up arms
to fight anywhere are illiterates without basic
education at least,” he said. “What 1 GAME is doing through the ‘Education
defeats Violence’ programme is to ensure that
vulnerable children of school age have access to
school and acquire basic education at least. As we
all know, a child who completes basic education is
three times less likely to be involved in violence and hoodlum acts. “So far, we have been campaigning seriously in the
media, using renowned individuals and school pupils
from impossible backgrounds to inspire vulnerable
children by urging them to embrace basic
education. In August, we shall embark on a door to
door campaign here in Cross River to ensure that every child in the State is in school and learning. “This is the biggest campaign out of here. You can
see that everyone in the state is involved. From the
government to the traditional leaders, down to the
women and youth leaders in every community. But
it will not just be a thing for Cross River State
alone. 1 GAME is a movement for Nigeria and Nigerians. Later in the year, we shall take the
programme to other parts of the country
particularly in the North where surveys are already
taking place in two states,” he added. The ‘Education defeats Violence’ programme is the
newest project initiated by the 1 GAME campaign to
ensure that every vulnerable child acquires basic
education at least, a move that will help reduce
their tendencies to be involved in violent acts.