Rep. Jeremiah Umaru (APC-Nasarawa), on Saturday, presented ₦10.6 million cash prizes to various winners of the debate organised for 35 secondary schools in his constituency.
Speaking at the event, Umaru, representing Akwanga/Nasarawa-Eggon/Wamba Federal Constituency of the state, said that the gesture aimed at promoting quality education within the constituency.
He said that the schools were selected from the 35 electoral wards in his constituency
Umaru said that he was impressed with the level of confidence and composure of the participants, adding that the students exhibited a high level of intellectual prowess during the exercise.
Umaru, who promised continuous impact on his constituency, also promised to make the debate an annual event, adding that it would encourage networking among the students and expose them to standard best practices.
He further said that the programme was designed to create a strong network for the students and provide them with a platform to build their capacities in public speaking.
“The network they are building today will brighten their academic pursuits in the future and strengthen their public speaking techniques.
”It will also enable them to achieve their dreams and aspirations in life with ease,” he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN), reports that Command Science Technical Secondary School, Rinze, Akwanga, emerged as the overall winner, while Baptist Academy, Wamba and Shepherd International College Akwanga, emerged first and second runners-up.
The lawmaker presented a cheque of ₦1 million and five laptops to the overall winner, ₦700,000 and three laptops to the first runner-up, while the third runner-up had ₦500,000 and two laptops.
He also presented ₦500,000 and one laptop to the best speaker, ₦250,000 and one laptop to the second-best speaker and ₦150,000 and one laptop to the third-best speaker in the competition.
The lawmaker equally presented ₦200,000 and educational materials to each of the remaining 32 schools that participated in the debate.