The Senior Staff Union in Colleges of Education, Nigeria (SSUCOEN) has expressed concern over the government’s continued neglect of teacher education, describing it as a critical foundation for national development.
The Union stressed that no country can achieve meaningful progress without investing in education, particularly in the training of teachers.
Speaking in Oyo during the Union’s 40th National Delegate Conference themed “Trade Union Practice in the Contemporary Nigerian Tertiary Education Sector: Clogs, Reflections, and Panacea for Robust Industrial Climate,” SSUCOEN President, Comrade Danladi Ali Msheliza, lamented the declining state of teacher education across the country.
He noted that the core of the nation’s educational foundation—primary and junior secondary school levels—is being weakened due to a lack of proper investment.
“Colleges of Education remain the only institutions specifically mandated to train teachers for the foundational levels of education. Yet, this crucial sub-sector continues to suffer from underfunding and neglect,” Msheliza said.
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He called on the government to urgently prioritise teacher education by increasing funding for colleges of education and equipping them with modern facilities to ensure quality training and delivery.
He said, “There is serious admission apathy towards teacher education, and the problem is nothing but the welfare of teachers in this country.
“So we’ve called on the government several times, we are still calling on the government, to ensure that the welfare of workers who generate the economy of this nation is given priority. You cannot neglect our subsector because the role we play can never be overemphasised.
“That is the reason why I said the government needs to do more for us as colleges of education in this country. We have a dual mandate now. We’ve been given the mandate to run both degree and NCE concurrently without affiliation to any university.
“Processes are ongoing. To perfect how the dual mandate will be run and executed.
“We call on government, we call on NUC, we call on the Federal Ministry of Education. Even though the minister has given us his word and we want to commend him, since he came on board he has done very, very well.
The guest speaker at the event, Prof. Segun Ajiboye, said the federal government should give more priority to tertiary education and avoid strikes with unions on campus so as not to jeopardise the future of Nigerian students.
Earlier in his address, SSUCOEN Federal College of Education Special Oyo Chapter chairman, Com. Omobosola Oladipupo said the theme of the event will address basic issue that are of concern to the union.
He said, “Trade unionism in Nigeria’s tertiary education subsector, we are considering the clause, the issues we are encountering, issues delaying the progress of the agitation, reflecting over the past years, what our activities and struggles like, what we can point out as our achievements, and we are trying to see where and how we need to restrategise to ensure we accomplish the mandate of the union.
“We have discovered that instead of striking all the time and getting nothing out of it, there should be other approaches which, of course, can compel the attention of government and other employing organisations and individuals in the interest of the populace of the workforce.
“We are looking at contemporary issues and how they affect tertiary education.”
Dignitaries at the event include the chairman of the Governing Council of FCE, Special, Oyo, Engr. Rauf Olaniyan and Provost of the institution, Dr. Rauf Salami among others.