Why South West states must revive reading culture – Akeredolu

Gov. Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State says South West states must revive the reading culture in order to improve the standard of education.

Akeredolu said this in Ibadan on Thursday at the public presentation of a book, ‘Tales of a Troubadour,’ written by Wale Okediran.

”It is clear that the Southwest is lagging behind in education.

“I know that what has happened over and over again is that every succeding generation has always found some gaps in the preceding generation.

“So, what has happened really is that we need to do more to ensure that we have reading culture.

“Whether we like it or not, the internet with development and laptop will certainly affect our reading culture.

“We must make certain efforts to make sure that if e-learning is what our people want, let us have e-library.

“In e-library you can control what students read,” he said.

Yinka Lawal-Solarin, the publisher of the book, commended the literary prowess of the author while lamenting the challenges facing the book industry in Nigeria.

“The book industry in Nigeria is not thriving today for so many reasons but mainly due to government policies.

“If government invests in infrastructure and instructional materials in schools, it would create employment, improve investment in print industry and increase the nation’s gross domestic product, ” he said.

The book’s reviewer, Prof. Mabel Evwierhoma, said the 286-page book made up of 28 chapters was a worthy addition highlighting experiences from other parts of the world.

“The author has shown the path of diligent pursuit and attainment of dreams.

“In Tales of a Troubadour, the author refers to himself as a recorder of men and showcased travel as a mean of education, history and culture,” she said.

In his remarks, Okediran said he had written 14 novels and 500 biographies.

“The theme of my work has always been my environment as well as social and political problems.

“The central message is for people to develop the love of writing and traveling and also to document experiences when we travel because you can learn a lot from what you see in other countries.

“This we can apply to our immediate environment for positive impact. I believe there is hope for a better Nigeria,” he said.