Ogun State has won the 2019 Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s (NNPC) Science Quiz Competition for secondary school students across the country.
Ogun state emerged as the winner at the grand finale of the completion held at the NNPC Towers in Abuja on Thursday.
Ojo Oluwatobi of APT Scholars Universal College, Ota, won the first price for Ogun State with 80 points while Mbazu Justice of CSMT Staff Secondary School, Abakaliki in Ebonyi State, took the second position with 70+points.
Nwachukwu Ugochukwu of Dority International School Aba, Abia State took the third position with 70 points.
The Group Managing Director of NNPC, Malam Mele Kyari, said that the corporation as an enabler company would continue to contribute to education to ensure a greater Nigeria.
He said that the competition was one aspect of the corporation’s effort in supporting nation building.
“Building a successful nation has to deal with talent management and as a corporation we try to recognise them young and help them to development it well.
Also, President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, urged the students to put in their best in whatever they did in life as leaders of tomorrow.
He commended the NNPC for the initiative adding that it had helped to develop a lot of scientists in the country.
Speaking on behalf of the participants, the 2019 winner, Oluwatobi commended the NNPC for the initiative and thanked all his teachers and parents for their support.
“I am very grateful to the NNPC for the opportunity and the initiatives such as this.
“This competition has made me to read so hard, I am happy to emerge as the winner.
“I am grateful to my teachers, parents and all the oraginsers.
“With this competition, I am very sure to pass all my exams very well,’’ he said.
The corporation, also in its report, said that the competition started at the grassroots level in each of 774 local government areas and best three student proceeded to the state level.
“At the state level, the best student in each state emerges and proceeds to the zonal level and each winner at this level is entitled to a one-off educational grant of N100.000,’’ it said.
It further noted that the states at the geopolitical zones meet at different times to compete among themselves and then determine the best three states to compete at the national grand finale.
NAN reports that the first position got N300,000 scholarship per session as an undergraduate, while the second position got N250,000 and third position N200,000 respectively.
Eighteen states participated in the grand finale with three states representing each of the geopolitical zones.
