The president and chairman of Council, Nigerian Library Association (NLA), Dominic Omokaro, has expressed concern that students have abandoned school libraries due to the absence of professional librarians to manage them.
Omokaro, who spoke in Abuja on Saturday, said this was the reason why library week was titled, “Revitalising the school library system, the way forward.”
He said some of the professionals employed over 20 years ago to manage school libraries had moved to either headquarters or various ministries after getting promotions.
He attributed the problem to the lackluster interest of governments in promoting the school library system in Nigeria.
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The NLA president stressed the need for the government to revitalise the challenging and neglected school library system and appreciate the importance of recruiting professionals to manage the libraries.
He said crime and the craze for wealth would reduce if the mind of young people was attached to reality through the culture of reading.
The NLA president ruled out the possibility of virtual libraries as a replacement for physical books.
Omokaro expressed optimism that the construction of the abandoned National Library would commence soon with the commitment of the Muhammadu Buhari administration to continue the project through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND).
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