• Warns against treating national assets like pet projects
• Alausa lauds First Lady’s donation initiative on 65th birthday
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has chided the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, over her comments that she would support the National Library completion as part of her birthday celebrations, stressing that the asset is a national monument and must not be reduced to charity.
The coalition party, therefore, called on the Federal Government to immediately take responsibility for completing the long-abandoned National Library project in Abuja, noting that such an asset should not be trivialised in whatever form or shape.
It further expressed appreciation for her gesture, but stressed that the National Library should not be reduced to a personal pet project.
According to the party, the National Library, established by an Act of Parliament in 1964, is the custodian of Nigeria’s collective memory and intellectual heritage.
It said that in this regard, its completion and long-term maintenance must be prioritised through transparent, sustainable and predictable national funding, and not through goodwill donations.
National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, Bolaji Abdullahi, said: “The African Democratic Congress (ADC) acknowledges and appreciates the thoughtful gesture of the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, in drawing attention to the abandoned National Library project in Abuja as part of her birthday celebrations.
“Now that Mrs. Tinubu has shown interest in the National Library, what is required is not personal charity, but presidential attention. The First Lady should use her influence to impress upon the President the urgency of completing this project through budgetary allocations.
However, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has extended gratitude to the First Lady for asking well-wishers to donate to the National Library project instead of presenting personal gifts as she marks her 65th birthday.
Director, Press and Public Relations in the ministry, Folasade Boriowo, in a statement, yesterday, noted that the “remarkable act of generosity and vision” is a “noble gesture that reflects her lifelong commitment to education and her belief in the transformative power of knowledge.”
The statement added that the revival of the National Library Fund is central to the Federal Government’s drive to reposition Nigeria from a resource-based to a knowledge-based economy.
