Zuma: Education, Key to Africa’s Development

•  Signs MoU with Rochas Foundation

Amby Uneze in Owerri

The President of South Africa, Jacob Zuma has stated that Africa as a continent and African nations cannot develop without education. He said Africa is carrying the burden imposed on it by the colonialists and the only way to confront such challenge is through education.

Zuma, who made this known in Owerri, Imo State when he visited for the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Jacob Zuma Education Foundation and the Rochas Okorocha Foundation College of Africa, said a child or a nation without education does not have the tool to face challenges.

“I am a freedom fighter who devoted his life for the fight for freedom of my people and Africa, but I have discovered that it is not only freedom that can change the lives of Africans, education is the key as power comes through knowledge and knowledge comes through education.

“We Africans are manipulated by those who benefit from our sufferings. Part of the reasons why I am being attacked in South Africa is because I believe that our rights are been maligned and our people are been exploited by our colonial masters. This can only be corrected through education empowerment of our people which Rochas Foundation is giving.”

“The founder of this Rochas Foundation is a true African, one among men who have understood the problems of Africa and know what to do to correct the problem. This African (Rochas) is different from other Africans, he is thinking broadly, he is beginning to solve the problem of Africa once and for all. Educating children from all length and breadth of the continent is the only solution to the African problem.

“We were divided by our colonial masters who created different burdens, but we are the same. To me this visit is far more important than the various state visits I have made because it touched the problem of Africans not by lamenting but by proffering solutions to it.

“I will soon retire, I have been thinking of what to do after service to my nation but today I have found a real African brother who shares in my vision. I have agreed with him that we will collaborate and make this foundation strong; I believe we can and when we do we may have found solution to African problems.

“Africans have lacked visionaries since the death of people like Nkurumah, Mandela, etc who did not only work for their nations because they believe that once they got it right with their nations, African will grow.

“Today, I am proud to associate with another great visionary who had discovered therapy for the Africa problem. I will ask my colleague presidents in Africa to key into this vision and if possible donate a small percentage of the money we contribute at Africa Union to foundations like this. This is doing unity and not talking unity,” he added.
To the students he said “I believe each and every one of you has a history like me, if I can make it without seeing the walls of any school, you can make it even better because of the quality education you are getting in this foundation; so make good use of the opportunity while you are here.”

In his remarks Okorocha said he was glad that the vision he had 17 years ago has grown in heaps and bounds, disclosing that the Rochas Foundation Colleges have over 15,000 students across the country and over four thousand graduates in the different fields.

“President Zuma has travelled miles away not for social interaction or political reasons but for the purpose of charity and humanitarian reasons. I boast not of the sustainability of this project, God only is the chief sustainer, I am not the richest but I am simply privileged to have the heart to give.

“As it stands today, I have dedicated 75 per cent of my wealth to service to charity, from all my income and whatever I make in my life as a successful businessman 75 per cent of them will go to charity, I have equally dedicated certain assets of mine not to be inherited by my children even when I am no more, those assets have been willed to Rochas Foundation for ever.”

“We have not gotten any means of support from anywhere in this world, neither have we gotten a dollar donated from any country of the world rather I have had few old widows who come around with some baskets of oranges and banana to support this cause.”

He continued “Every child here is a story. Of recent we have children from Guinea and Sierra Leone whose parents and relatives all died of Ebola and they were left alone in this world, these children we are now giving hope again to live. These ones will go nowhere anymore until they finish their universities and then we shall send them back to their countries where they will contribute to the economic development of their countries.”