FUTURE PROWESS: A LIFELINE FOR ORPHANS IN BORNO Category: News Published on Wednesday, 02 October 2013 06:00 Written by Hamza Idris and Yahaya Ibrahim, Maiduguri Hits: 1350 In the last three years, hundreds of people have been killed in some states of northern Nigeria as a result of the activities of suspected members of the Jama’atu Ahlis Sunnah Lidda’awati Wal Jihad, also known as Boko Haram. The insurgency has also taken its toll on the prospects hundreds of children who have been orphaned by the Boko Haram crisis which has also crippled social and economic life of the people. Education is another victim of the insurgency following the burning of over 800 schools across the 27 local government areas of the state. Governor Kashim Shettima recently said his administration will soon embark on reconstructing the schools so as not to toy with the future of the children. However, despite the unprecedented challenges facing the state, there are individuals who have remained resolute in putting a smile in the faces of some of the orphans. One of them is Barrister Zanna Mustapha, the founder of Future Prowess Foundation, an endeavour towards ameliorating the suffering of orphans and the less privileged in the society. At the time he formed the foundation, Barrister Mustapha never envisaged that his philanthropic intervention will be a lifeline for many children. Through his private school which has solid Islamic foundation, Barrister Zanna has taken away hundreds of orphans from the streets of Maiduguri and environs. Most of the orphans were hitherto allowed by their equally unprivileged mothers to take care of themselves through hawking and begging even as many others have turned into a nuisance in the society. It was gathered that at the initial stage of the foundation, between 2006 and 2007, long before the Boko Haram insurgency, Barrister Zanna wanted to help children that lost their parents through natural causes. However, from 2009 to date, the precarious security situation has increased the scope of the project to include children orphaned by various causes, including the Boko Haram, thereby making his school highly competitive for thousands of children who are aspiring to get a placement in order to have a brighter future. According to Suleiman Aliyu, the headmaster of the school, “the mission of setting up the school was to reduce the number of children roaming the streets of Maiduguri. The founder of the school has remained resolute in keeping to his promise,” he said. He said the school takes care of the pupils. “We give them free education, free uniform, exercise books, sandals and also feed them daily. “Though we are running day programme, the school is responsible for providing the pupils with breakfast and other necessary things to make their study easier. At the end of every day, the pupils go back to their guardians,’’ the headmaster said. A walk through the school premises reveals a modest institution with basic facilities for learning and scholarship, these include classrooms, headmaster’s office, a computer workshop and fish ponds. “We teach the children both Islamic and western education and the curriculum of the school is the one designed by the ministry of education,’’ he further said. He also acknowledged the commitment of the director of the school. “The director makes sure he sources for fund for the sustenance of the school, including paying the teachers’ salaries, overhead and the day to day running of the school,” he said. “We also have fish ponds which serve as revenue earner for the school and I am happy to inform you that some well-meaning individuals, including elder statesmen, Dr Shettima Ali Monguno, Senator Ali Ndume, the Borno State Commissioner for Education, Inuwa Kubo, wife of the governor, Hajiya Nana Kashim Shettima among others are assisting the school,’’ he said. Some of the pupils interviewed expressed appreciation to the founder and prayed God to give him long life. “He (Barrister Zanna) has given us hope for the future. I believe life wouldn’t have been the same if not because of him,” Sheriff Mukhtar, a pupil in the school said.
Posted on: Sun, 27 Oct 2013 09:21:47 +0000
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