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Dr. Paul Erinne Foundation Commits ₦250 Million to Rebuild GSS Afikpo Assembly Hall
Dr. Paul Erinne Foundation Commits ₦250 Million to Rebuild GSS Afikpo Assembly Hall
The 1967 alumnus of Government Secondary School (GSS), Afikpo, has committed ₦250 million to comprehensively remodel the school’s Assembly Hall — a donation that education stakeholders say represents the largest single alumni-funded infrastructure investment in any secondary school in South-East Nigeria.
Dr. Paul Erinne, a structural engineer, entrepreneur, and founder of the Paul Erinne Foundation, made this announcement on Saturday, 17 May 2026, before assembled alumni, school officials, and dignitaries at the school grounds in Afikpo, Ebonyi State, as part of the activities of the 2026 National Delegates Conference of the GSS Afikpo Old Boys’ Association (GSSAOBA).
The scale of the project itself a story. When GSSAOBA Past National Chairman, Chief Ifeanyi Eleje first invited his classmate, Dr. Erinne, to consider supporting the Assembly Hall as a legacy undertaking, the estimated cost stood at ₦100 million.
Dr. Erinne, drawing on decades of professional experience, insisted on conducting a thorough site inspection before committing. What he found changed the figures and raised the standards.
“I advised him to visit the school to make adequate evaluation as a renowned structural engineer. He visited and made critical observations which significantly increased the scope of the project,” Chief Ifeanyi Eleje, Past National Chairman, GSSAOBA said.
Following that assessment, the scope expanded to ₦250 million — a figure Dr. Erinne committed to funding personally. In a gesture that reflects both humility and community thinking, he has deliberately left portions of the broader campus project open for other alumni to adopt, ensuring the initiative becomes a shared legacy rather than a solitary act.
On completion, the Assembly Hall will be transformed into a state-of-the-art multipurpose facility. Confirmed features include modern interior fittings and furnishings, integrated multimedia and audiovisual infrastructure, a professional-grade public address and sound system, and solar-powered energy installation for sustained operation.
The hall is intended to serve as a venue for academic assemblies, civic engagement programmes, cultural events, and intellectual discourse, extending its usefulness well beyond the school calendar.
Addressing the assembled audience in Afikpo, Dr. Erinne framed the donation not as charity but as obligation and delivered a direct message to the students who will inherit the facility.
“I am remodelling the school’s Assembly Hall to encourage our children and grandchildren to succeed through this institution. We need to inculcate discipline in them, as it remains the only way to success,” said Dr. Paul Erinne, Donor and 1967 Alumnus.
“GSS Afikpo gave me and countless others the tools to succeed. It is only right that we give back in a manner that endures for generations,” Dr. Paul Erinne said.
He called on the appointed contractor and the school principal to ensure judicious application of the funds and the long-term stewardship of the completed structure.
Dr. Bobbie Iwe, the incumbent National President of GSSAOBA, described the project as a historic marker for alumni-led educational development in the region.
“This project signals the commencement of one of the most significant alumni-driven educational infrastructure initiatives in South-East Nigeria. It is about more than bricks and mortar—it is a statement of gratitude to an institution that shaped generations of leaders,” Dr. Bobbie Iwe, National President, GSSAOBA
Mr. Ogbonnia Nwachi, the 21st Principal of GSS Afikpo, expressed the school community’s appreciation and pledged transparent and accountable management of the renovated school facility.
Founded during the colonial era, Government Secondary School, Afikpo, is among Nigeria’s most distinguished secondary institutions. Its alumni roll spans law, engineering, medicine, academia, public service, and business – a record of output that the GSSAOBA Legacy Project seeks to honour and sustain.
The Pavilion and Assembly Hall projects were first conceived during the two-term GSSAOBA national presidency of Chief Eleje as enduring monuments to alumni commitment. Dr. Erinne’s intervention has elevated the Assembly Hall component into a benchmark for what is possible when alumni loyalty meets professional rigour.
