2024 UTME: Pure water hawker scores 309, bags scholarship
Have you ever wondered about the journey of a street hawker? How does their day unfold? And where could it possibly lead? Let’s delve into one such journey. A tale of grit, determination and ultimately, triumph. Every morning as the city awakens, our hawker too stirs from sleep saddled with a bowl fill of water sachets (commonly called pure water in Nigeria), he steps out into the bustling streets, the city in all its chaos and charm is his market place.
With a warm smile and a heart fill of dreams, this pure water hawker, by the name Augustus Ugwu, navigates through the dense traffic selling his wares to thirsty passersby. But this boy’s day doesn’t end with a setting sun. When the city goes to sleep Augustus prepares for a different battle. Under the dim light of a flickering bulb, he opens his books and dives into a world of knowledge. Going from beginning to end of past JAMB questions books from decades to decades. Every night he wrestles with equations, grapples with words and chases after knowledge. While many students his age from rich homes enjoy short times with their devices watching TIKTOK and Instagram, Augustus wrestled through into the night with dim lights just to grasp the foundation of every difficult question. It must have been tedious balancing his hawking business during the day and his studies at night. He fights the hard push of sleep, fatigue and the occasional flicker of self-doubt. But every struggle and challenge only fuels his resolve.
Then comes the exam D-DAY. He walks into the exam hall with his heart pounding in anticipation. Hours later, he steps out with sense of accomplishment.
Bravoo!!! Weeks later, this pure water hawker, scored 309. This simply means that hard work really pays.
Alex Onyia, the founder of Educare, an organisation that prepares candidates for UTME, revealed that Augustus left school two years ago. He wrote, “This youngster from my village, Ugwu Chibuzo Augustus, scored 309 in JAMB. He left school 2 years ago and has been selling pure water in the streets.
“We convinced him to join the JAMB prep program with a promise that he will get a scholarship if he scores above 300. He took up that challenge.”
