A 15 year-old boy, Akindele Oyedele, emerged as the National Champion
of the 2013 Cowbell National Secondary Schools Mathematics Competition
on Thursday.
The pupil of Iganmode Grammar School, Ota, a public
school in Ogun State, scored 94 points out of a possible 100 to beat a
14-year-old pupil of Reality High School, Ilesa, Osun State, who scored
82 to clinch the second position.
Obasi Peter, 17, from the University of Nigeria Secondary School, Enugu, scored 81 points to clinch the third position.
Iganmode
Grammar School has now won the competition back to back for three
years. Akindele Nurein Oyetobi and Uwa Benjamin from the school had
earlier won the competition in 2011 and 2012 respectively.
In
the Junior Category, 13-year-old boy, Iyoha Omonzokpia of Loyola Jesuit
College, Abuja, scored 93 points to beat Omojola Samuel, of Reality High
School, Ilesha, Osun state, who scored 91 to clinch the second
position. Amulah Caleb, 14, of Mount Saint Gabriel's School, Benue
scored 89 to win the third position.
Over 30,000 pupils from different schools sat for the competition across over 200 centres in Nigeria.
Managing
Director, Promasidor Nigeria Limited -- makers of Cowbell Milk, Chief
Keith Richards, noted that the intensity, fortitude and integrity of the
competition had been sustained since it started in 1998. He added that
the competition was free and open to all secondary school pupils between
ages 10 and 18.
Lamenting that education was declining in
Nigeria, especially in the North, due to terrorism, he regretted that no
pupil from the North-East schools participated in the competition.
Richards
said, "In the last couple of years, we have struggled because of the
activities of Boko Haram and other criminal terrorist organisations that
are against education and by doing that, they are threatening the hope
and the future of Nigeria's future generations and their children.
"Since
the insurgency heightened, the level of participation in the North has
reduced considerably. The results of this year's competition further
lend credence to the downward trend of education advancement in Nigeria"
Although
he acknowledged that Nigeria still had a bright future, Richards
appealed to the government and other well-meaning Nigerians to "act fast
and save the situation, as it may destroy the future of many."
Director-General,
National Mathematics Centre, Prof. Adewale Solarin, at the event called
on other private organisations to support educational programme.
He
revealed that the centre had embarked on the training of students for
the forthcoming Pan-African Mathematics Olympiad to be hosted by
Nigeria.
Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufai, who was
represented by the Director, Science and Technology, Dr. Abass Adedibu,
said mathematics and science play a significant role in the economic
development of a nation.
Winning schools in the competition went
home with Desktop computers and printers, apart from monetary gift to
the winning pupils.
The best 10 pupils in the senior category were also given laptops.
Iganmode Grammar School won the Benson Oweka Memorial Prize for its consistent and outstanding performance for over three years.
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