As I received Ehizogie Jeffrey Aidelogie, who emerged as the best candidate in the state in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), organised by the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), I commended him for his brilliant performance.

I congratulate Jeffrey and the management of Saint Michael College, in Ikhueniro, Benin, for this great achievement. As a government, education is our priority. We are encouraged by what they are doing and will continue to support their efforts.

My administration is investing at the very foundational stage of education with the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (EdoBEST) programme. We are scaling EdoBEST to junior and senior secondary schools, as well as technical schools.

Former Governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke, who was glad to be part of the event, added his voice by calling on Jeffrey to encourage those around him to thrive academically like himself, saying that a lot of people are proud of his achievements.

Earlier, Ehizogie Jeffrey Aidelogie, who scored 347 in the exam, ranking among the first ten highest scorers in the 2021 UTME, ascribed his success to hard work and support from his teacher, classmates and his parents, and promised to remain a good ambassador of the state.