Borno State governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima has blamed the increasing plight of almajiris, orphans and widows in the North on what he described as leadership failure and the inability of northern leaders to address the educational, religious and parental requirements of the vulnerable groups in society.

The governor warned that the problems would persist until the requirements and needs of the underprivileged in the northern societies were met, stressing that societal burden of the under-privileged individuals might even impact negatively on the social, economy and politics of the North.

Kashim raised the alarm in Maiduguri at the launching of a foundation, Support for Widows, Orphans and Tsangaya (SWOT) by his wife, Hajiya Nana Kashim Shettima, at the Government House.

According to him, the failure of leaders generally in providing functional and effective educational system in the North, as well as lack of good religious and moral upbringings for children has been the cause of massive breeding of street children in nearly all parts of the North.

The governor going down memory lane, rated the education system operated in the 60s and the 70s in Nigeria as better off, noting, “Between the late 1960’s and 1970’s the educational and feeding systems in schools were the best, making students to perform remarkably well in the West African Examination Council, (WAEC) and the General Certificate in Education (GCE).

“If the educational system and structures obtained in those good old days were fully maintained and sustained by our leaders, the launching of SWOT Foundation could not have been established by my wife, Hajja Nana, for the purpose of catering for these vulnerable groups of people, since their plights would have long been addressed by successive governments.”

He said notwithstanding the long neglect of the under-privileged in Borno State, his government had been alive to the task of ensuring better welfare for them through the rehabilitation of all dilapidated schools, creation of skills acquisition training centres and orphanage homes across the state to cater for their need.”

The almajiris in the Tsangaya school system, he said, would become functional and be made to contribute their quotas to the growth of the education sector in Borno State.

Presenting a paper titled: “Almajiris, Widows and Orphans, Causes and prospects,” a guest speaker, Medina Dauda of the Voice of America (VOA) said the vulnerable should be empowered with education and required skills through donations by rich members of the public.

Over N100 million were donated at the foundation’s launching, with the governor pledging N5 million while his deputy and wife doled out N4 million. Secretary to the state Government, Ambassador Baba Jidda pledged a donation of N20 million on behalf of the state, while Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff also gave N5 million.