Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose has apologised to primary school teachers for the mix-up in the payment of their September salary.
A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi, said: “Even though the mix-up was from the Accountant General’s office but as the governor, I take responsibility.
“I want to apologise for the inconsistency and problems encountered in crediting the accounts of some primary school teachers. It was after my broadcast few days back that I got a lot of text messages from some teachers who were affected.
“I sincerely want to apologise, I have gotten to the root of the matter, I have found out that there were mix-ups here and there, the accounts were credited and later withdrawn for carelessness in the accountant general’s office, for whatever it is I take responsibility.
I apologise and want to assure you all the lapses will be corrected.
“My teachers at the primary school level, this money will be credited to your accounts today unfailingly. My apologies.”
Vehicular traffic was brought to a halt at Ojo Local Government Area of Lagos when primary school teachers took to the streets to engage in a walk for fitness exercise.
The teachers adorned in blue ‘Walk for fitness’ branded shirts jogged for five kilometres from Ilogbo, Badagry Road to Ojo town.
The quarterly exercise, first in its series, engaged both teaching and non-teaching staff, as well as food vendors of the Ojo Local Government Education Authority (LGEA), Oto Awori and Iba Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) as well as the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) in about four hours of brisk walking and aerobics.
Ojo LGEA Education Secretary Tolani Sule who led the walk, said the exercise was to create awareness on physical fitness for teachers beyond classroom teaching of the subject.
He said: “We want to ensure that there is a correlation between physical fitness and mental health of the teachers. We found out that it is a healthy, fit and sound teacher that would be able to do the job efficiently. So we tried to look out for other things we could do besides the efforts of the state government to make teachers happy and healthy. We therefore decided that at every term in the session, we would hold a fitness walk of about five kilometres to keep us fit.”
Sule stressed that ailments such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, among others would be ostracised with routine exercise.
Dr Rahimi Morounfolu, a lecturer at the department of Physical and Health Education, Lagos State University (LASU), stressed the importance of relieving stress through regular exercises.
Speaking at the St. Micheals Primary School, Ojo, where the teachers gathered for aerobics after the walk, he said: “Stress is your body’s reaction to situations around you. Chronic stress usually has a delayed but prolonged effect on the individual, which is more dangerous than acute stress. It quickly degenerates into distress when not taken care of. However, the most effective non-medical way of handling stress is exercise, especially brisk walking, which engages all muscles, vessels and parts of the body.”
Dr Morounfolu, who opined that women are more prone to chronic stress than men due to combination of officer work with housekeeping, appealed to the men to assist their wives at home to relieve them of the stress.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti State has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of inciting primary teachers against the Ayo Fayose administration.
The ruling party claimed “The APC has infiltrated the civil service to cause confusion in the payment of primary school teachers’ salaries as well as sabotage government efforts”.
In a statement yesterday by its Publicity Secretary, Jackson Adebayo, the PDP alleged that the opposition met with some civil servants on “how to cause confusion after they were unable to stop the Federal Government from wholly disregarding the bailout request by Fayose”.
Adebayo claimed that part of the strategy adopted was the wrong posting of salaries to primary school teachers when their pay is not captured in the bailout.
According to the PDP spokesman, those who posted the money could not say they didn’t know that the bail-out did not capture primary school teachers’ salaries.
“We are, however, happy that the situation has been corrected and primary school teachers are now receiving alerts. We advise civil servants who have found themselves in this dirty deal to remember that this was how they were used against their colleagues during the last administration of the APC.”
Dedeke Memorial Nursery and Primary School stands proudly on the busy Akerele Road in the heart of Surulere Local Government of Lagos State.
The two classroom blocks as well as a small building that houses two toilets in its small compound glisten with new paint.
Radiant faces of happy pupils learn from contented teachers within its walls. The teachers and pupils are happy to come to school every day. They have the Nigerian Breweries-Felix Ohiwerei Foundation to thank for the new look the school wears.
This was not the case at the end of the 2014/2015 academic session in July. The school was run down. Its Head Teacher, Mrs Josephine Mayungbo, said the most parts of the buildings were not usable.
“It was an eyesore. In fact when I came here, I was not happy at all. The roof was leaking; the ceiling had gone down in the class. We had only one classroom that was good out of about six classrooms and a library. The office was leaking; the toilet was nothing to write home about,” said Mrs Mayungbo.
Corroborating her claim, a teacher (names withheld), said the poor state of facilities made it tedious to hold classes during the rainy season.
“When it rains, we had to move the children from one place to the other – looking for dry places to learn. Some children did not show up during the rains. It affected my morale coming to school,” she said.
Deputy Director, Social Mobilization, Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (LSUBEB), Mrs Adenike Folami, said the school’s former state was disgraceful.
So concerned was she about the state of the school that she urged her superiors at the SUBEB Headquarters to embark on urgent palliative measures pending when funds would be allocated for rehabilitation.
Recounting her experience when the Nigerian Breweries (NB) PLC inaugurated the new school buildings, Mrs Folami said: “Last year, I was here and I saw the dilapidated buildings and I told the chairman that this school is by the road – in the heart of the centre of excellence; that they should do something about it. Now, we thank God the Nigerian Breweries came along. We thank you for what you have done,” she said.
The teacher and pupils are also grateful and were in high spirits during the inauguration.
A Primary Six pupil, Fatima Binta, described the before state of the school as “not fine” and its present state as “very fine” as she waited impatiently to return to dancing to the music playing in the background.
To show appreciation to NB PLC for the gesture, Executive Secretary, Surulere Local Government Area, Mrs Bamidele Hussain, presented two large wall clocks to the company’s representatives. She also presented school bags and writing materials to the pupils, and marker pens in anticipation of the white boards that the firm promised to install in all the classrooms.
In his speech, Mr Nicholaas Vervelde, Managing Director, NB PLC, said the gesture demonstrated the firm’s high regard for education.
“As we commission and handover the reconstructed Dedeke Memorial Nursery and Primary School, today’s event is a confirmation that our company’s investment in education is not mere charity. It is indeed a pragmatic action aimed at creating a rich pool of human capital from which we and others can harness,” he said.
Teaching and non-teaching members of staff of Dansol High School have been honoured by parents.
The staff appreciation programme was part of ongoing activities to celebrate the school’s 20th anniversary.
From the security, kitchen, sickbay to the classroom, every worker got a gift at the event courtesy of the Parents/Teachers Association (PTA).
There were additional gifts for six teachers who had been outstanding in the delivery of their duties.
In the junior school, Mr Gbadamosi Olakunle, Owolabi Samuel and Oriola Chukwudi came first – third; in the senior school category, the honours went to Mr Paul Ogunnubi, Mr Joseph Daramola, and Bukola Oyedotun.
They were selected based on recommendations by their departmental heads, the founder of the school, Mrs Adun Akinyemiju, and an appraisal of their performance.
They were rewarded with washing machines, LED TV sets, and food processors.
In her speech, the PTA Chairman, Mrs Bukola Ajoku, thanked the teachers and other workers for their investment in the children under their care.
“Teaching is more, much more than the four walls of a classroom; much more than Mathematics or English. Teaching is touching lives and changing destinies; not just for the students but for the parents and indirectly, the world. The job of a teacher is the little things that they do and the way they touch lives.
“So for everything you’ve done, and for all your impact that cannot be measured in any form of monetary value, we use this medium to appreciate you – for the prayers, support and the little bit of yourself you give out every day. We say thank you,” she said.
In her remarks, Mrs Akinyemiju, praised workers of the school for maintaining cordial relationships with parents, which she said were crucial to producing total children.
“The relationship between many schools and the home is like tug of war. But here, it is different. There is cooperation between parents and teachers,” she said.
She urged the teachers to sow good seeds by teaching the pupils well. The programme also featured songs by the pupils, raffle draw for all participants, and a praise session.
One of the major anomalies of the Nigerian education system is the profusion of unlicensed teachers working within it. An unlicensed teacher is a person working in an instructive capacity in a primary, secondary or tertiary institution, without a valid teaching licence from the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN).
There can be no doubt about the vital necessity of licensing Nigerian teachers. It enhances professionalism and helps to raise the standards of one of the most important professions. It serves as a form of quality control by ensuring that quackery is minimized. It facilitates the overall development of the education sector by explicitly promoting an adherence to the highest standards of teaching and learning.
Licensing does not necessarily turn bad teachers into good ones, but it does offer a process through which poor teachers can improve. By contrast, not licensing teachers ensures that the education system will be full of individuals who have absolutely no right to be there.
Nigeria is in the paradoxical situation of having very many teachers but relatively few effective ones. Teaching is the country’s pre-eminent all-comers’ profession, the last option to which desperate job-seekers resort when other employment opportunities are not available. It is thus full of poorly-motivated and apathetic personnel, whose lack of interest in teaching is reflected in the low quality of their output.
The negative consequences for the country are obvious. In a nation where some 10.5 million children are already out of school, the excess of unlicensed teachers compounds the problem of guaranteeing educational quality.
Unlicensed teachers are more likely to produce pupils and students who cannot meet the literacy and numeracy standards appropriate to their educational level, and who go on to perform woefully in public examinations like the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
Teachers who are not licensed are less likely to embark on professional development programmes, since they see their stay in education as a temporary sojourn. They are not as aware of the ethics of teaching as they should be, and are consequently more prone to engage in unethical practices.
The country’s poorly-regarded public schools ironically have a relatively high percentage of licensed teachers, but poor pay, overcrowded classes and inadequate infrastructure neutralize this advantage.
Private schools, which are increasingly favoured by parents and guardians, often have better facilities, but the tendency to focus on profit means that many of their teaching personnel are unlicensed, even though they may have advanced degrees.
As the government agency charged with the regulation of teaching practice in Nigeria, the TRCN has a comprehensive programme of registration and licensing teachers. It also accredits, monitors and supervises courses in teacher training institutions in the country.
In December 2014, it introduced the teachers’ Professional Qualifying Examination Benchmarks to streamline the registration process. In addition to these roles, the council must now seek to emphasize its enforcement functions. It is empowered to compel ethical conduct among teachers and can prosecute unqualified teachers in accordance with its enabling act. Without the threat of sanctions, there will be little incentive for teachers to seek licences.
The Federal Ministry of Education can aid this process by making the employment of licensed teachers a major criterion for the establishment of private schools. For their part, private schools must realize that the employment of unlicensed teachers is self-defeating in the long run. The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) must ensure that all its members are licensed and drop its opposition to teacher certification exercises aimed at improving teacher quality.
Teaching is the mother of all professions. Ensuring that those who practice it are licensed in a manner similar to their counterparts in law, medicine and engineering, would restore dignity to a profession which it has lacked for a very long time.
Retired primary school teachers in Enugu State have complained about being owed 27 months of pension.
The senior citizens lamented that some of them were yet to receive their gratuity after retirement since 2002.
The retired teachers from the three senatorial zones made known their woes when they paid a courtesy call on the Speaker of Enugu State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Edward Ubosi in his office.
A delegation of the retired teachers led by their chairman, Chief Matthias Onovo and the secretary, Chief Ben Nwachi disclosed that they had written relevant authorities in the past without any positive result saying that as a result of the lack of payment of their pension and other entitlements, some of their colleagues have died while many are bed-ridden for lack of fund for medical care.
Having exhausted every avenue possible to see that the past administration paid them their due, the retired teachers resorted to calling on the Speaker to bail them out.
They listed other grievances to include harmonisation arrears, 6, 15, and 33 percent pension increases; irregularities in payment of monthly pensions, and non implementation of promotion re-computer i.e promotion received after retirement among others.
Ubosi assured the retired teachers that something would be done to alleviate their plight saying that, “your labours will never go in vain. You have laboured and you deserve to be paid. “
The speaker said that they came at the right time when the government has set up an audit committee of the local governments of which he is the chairman, pointing out that the issue of teachers as well as their pensioners was part of the terms of reference given by the governor.
He thanked them for making the submission that would serve as a guide to the audit committee set up by Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi led administration to look into the rot in the councils with a view to making them viable.
The Executive Secretary of the Bayelsa State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Mr. Walton Liverpool, stirred a controversy at the Peace Park, Yenagoa, during the celebration of this year’s World Teachers’ Day. The teachers disagreed on some of the things he reeled off as achievements of the state government to improve the educational system.
•A cross section of teachers at the World Teachers’ Day in Bayelsa
In unison, the teachers who attended this year’s celebration with mixed feelings, shouted in protest when Liverpool, the chairman of the occasion, claimed that Governor Seriake Dickson-led administration had provided school uniforms to Bayelsa pupils; sank boreholes in schools to provide potable water; conducted regular seminars and workshops as well as provided free school buses.
The way the teachers reacted angrily, almost booing Liverpool, it was obvious that the government was economical with the truth in those areas. But none of the teachers disagreed with the SUBEB boss when he mentioned the construction of headmasters’ and teachers’ quarters and building of office blocks in schools as some of the achievements of the government.
Other achievements that the teachers seemed to have agreed with were supply of desks, seats to schools; the college of education at Sagbama; overseas scholarship programmes for students and regular payment of teachers’ and other workers’ salaries.
Again, Liverpool incurred the wrath of the teachers. He tried to rehash the solidarity statements of the union and ended by saying, “the struggle continues”. Unknown to him, Bayelsa teachers are now more upwardly mobile, more enlightened and better educated and have done away with aphorisms conveniently adopted by politicians to keep marginalising them.
So, the idea that teachers’ struggles are unending was quite infuriating, as openly expressed by the audience. They resisted it and raised their voices in demonstration until the Principal Secretary, National Union of Teachers (NUT), who is also a lawyer, Comrade Okoroafor Okechukwu, spoke a more popular language to them. He calmed the frayed nerves when he said: “teachers struggle ends today”.
But the struggles among Bayelsa teachers seem endless.
The state Chairman, NUT, Comrade Bokolo Tonworio, listed plethora of demands of Bayelsa teachers. He said the primary and post-primary teachers are yet to be paid the N18, 000 minimum wage arrears which nearly all other public servants had been paid. He lamented non-implementation of 2013/2014 primary school teachers’ promotion and inability of the government to conduct 2015 promotion exercise for primary school teachers.
It was all knocks on the government for failing to pay promotion arrears arising from 2013 promotions and non-supply of instructional materials and statutory school records in the spirit of the emergency in education.
Part of his worries is also that there are discrepancies between the “oracle-captured” and “non-oracle-based teachers” in the payment of monthly salaries.
Besides, funding of examination and continuous assessments across the schools and recruitment of teachers into rural schools are part of the headaches in the system.
But the teachers are not ungrateful. They thanked the government for declaring a state of emergency in education sector and pursuing it vigorously.
The NUT boss commended Dickson’s government for prompt payment of teachers’ salaries; massive rehabilitation of educational infrastructure; restoration of scholarships at the secondary school levels; establishment of befitting teachers training academy, Bolou-Orua, Sagbama and supply of computer sets and power generating sets.
He said the theme of the celebration, “Empowering Teachers, Building Sustainable Societies”, was apt as it emphasised the significance of teachers and underscores their critical position in the society and nation-building.
“The business of teachers’ empowerment is the duty of all the stakeholders in the community. The union calls on all stakeholders to place the empowerment of teachers in the front burner of their policies and agenda.
“The government should see the teacher as a veritable tool and medium by which the philosophies, ethos, norms, ethics, ideas and aesthetics will be transferred to the future.
“Therefore, disempowering teachers is tantamount to creating a future of powerless and feeble citizens that will further perpetuate the dependency of Nigeria to our erstwhile colonial masters and deepening of corruption and socio-economic malaise”, he said.
In his remarks, Okechukwu said the day was set aside to honour and celebrate teachers because of their pivotal roles in the society.
He said: “For us in Bayelsa, this day is almost like one’s birthday. It is a day to encourage and recognise practising teachers. When you honour the teacher, you are motivating him.
“The government of Dickson has been steadfast in the funding of primary and secondary education. It has been consistent, especially in the payment of salaries. But all has not been too well for teachers because of the discrepancy between oracle-captured teachers and persons not yet captured.
“I don’t know why the discrepancy should exist. It is either that all of them go digital or they go manual to create equal playing field among the teachers. We want this dichotomy dismantled. We suggest that every teacher should be captured in the oracle.
“The government has done very well in physical infrastructure but has not done well in supply of instructional materials and statutory records to schools. It is an impediment to effective teaching and learning in schools.”
At the event, Governor Dickson was represented by his deputy, Rear Admiral John Jonah (rtd), who was accompanied by the Chief of Staff, Government House, Chief Talford Ongolo, Commissioner for Youths, Mr. Collins Cocodia and other members of the cabinet.
But the governor later met with the teachers at the Banquet Hall where they feast. Dickson used the occasion to further reel off his achievements in the educational sector. He said his over N25 billion investments in the sector and the dedication of teachers yielded positive results.
According to him, the state which used to be very poor in external examination was ranked 4th in the federation in the last Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination, (SSSCE).
He said the report released recently by the West African Examinations Council, (WAEC), named the six leading states as, Anambra 65.92 per cent, Abia 58.52 per cent, Edo 57.82 per cent, Bayelsa 52.83 per cent, Rivers 52.73 per cent and Enugu 51.91 per cent.
He said: “The development necessitated the declaration of a state of emergency in the sector and the government has invested N25 billion so far in the last three-and- half years to revamp the sector.”
He enjoined the teachers to always do their utmost, stating that his administration will continually address their welfare as well as improve the infrastructure in the sector.
Dickson, who praised teachers for their contributions to the growth and development of society, assured that in the next two weeks, the Teachers Training Academy would be inaugurated to train and re-train teachers to excel in their various professions.
Describing the teaching profession as crucial in nation-building, the governor warned school principals against extortion of students under the guise of the National Examinations Council (NECO) and the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) fees. He further stressed that the government has been picking the bills for such fees to alleviate the plight of parents and wards.
Responding, Okechukwu expressed gratitude to the state government for the prompt payment of salaries to workers, despite the austere times. He also praised government’s approval for the payment of arrears of N18, 000 minimum wages.
He pledged the union’s total support for Dickson’s re-election bid to enable the restoration government to consolidate on its achievements.
The abductors of two teachers of Rundele High School including an NYSC member who was suppose to pass- out Thursday and the school labourer in Emohua Local government of Rivers State have demanded a whopping ransom of N25million for the four people under their custody.
The leaders of Agba-Ndele Community Thursday confirmed the news of the ransom which they said was made through the Vice Principal of Rundele High School, Mr. Anthony Ovodo and Chief Christian Iroanwuri.
But the community which spoke through the Chairman, Community Development Committee (CDC) Elder Ikechi Chimezie said the community cannot get such a huge amount of money considering the harsh economic condition of the people.
He pleaded with the kidnappers to consider the plight of the victims and release them unconditionally, adding that none of the victims or community leaders has enough cash to pay such huge amount of ransom.
Some of the NYSC members who spoke to The Nation Thursday during batch C passing-out parade in Port Harcourt said the issue of abduction of corps members serving in Rivers State is becoming alarming. They however demanded for unconditional release of their colleague.
A corps member, Emmanuel Baba, Accounting graduate said, “I felt so sad when we heard about the news of his kidnap. We were doing counting and everybody was jubilating when the news broke. We are praying to God and calling on the kidnappers to release our colleague unconditionally.”
Another corps member, Ononogbo Chibuike, a Mathematics graduate said, “The government should provide adequate security in all the corpers’ lodge. Sometimes they post us to places where we cannot understand their security challenges. I want to beg the government to assist in the release of the kidnapped corps member.
But Nigerian Democratic Awareness Forum, a non- governmental organization in the state said the NYSC state Secretariat has not show any seriousness in creating awareness about the kidnapped corps member.
The leader of the group, Comrade Prince Obiajunwo Dike stated this while reacting on the abduction the corps member.
He accused the NYSC state Director of showing lackadaisical attitude over what he described as a serious matter.
“We are not happy over the nonchalant attitude of the NYSC state directorate; they have done nothing to create awareness to the public or the government for the freedom of the corps member serving in Rivers State. We will not take it for granted if by this weekend NYSC fails to show a serious concern.”
Success indeed has many relatives. On Monday, when I set my eyes on Mrs Nkemdilim Roseline Obi, I thought she looked familiar. She was walking to the podium after being named the best teacher in Anambra State by the Maltina Teacher of the Year panel of judges when I caught the side of her face. She looked like one of my seniors in secondary school. I was so sure she was the senior that I approached the principal of her school, Federal Government Girls’ College, Onitsha, who happened to have taught at my alma mater, Federal Government Girls’ College, Benin while I was there, to ask if she was indeed the one. Mrs Enonnuya said no. But I was not convinced. I had to find out from her myself.
So, I moved around the grand ballroom of the Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, venue of the event, looking for the delectable Nkem (She looked so young that calling her Mrs Obi makes me feel like I am piling years on her). I did not find her at first. I had to go back to my seat and watch closely to note where she sat after she was called again as one of the top 10 finalists. When I was sure of where she was, I walked up to her table and sat by her. By the time I saw her close, I knew I had been mistaken about her being my senior. Nonetheless, I did not come this far to say, ‘sorry, you are not the one’. I introduced myself, asked where she schooled, and told her of my error. With nothing more to discuss at that moment, I wished her the best and left.
As the event progressed, some journalists on my table tipped her for the prize. I did not want to be so forward but I hoped in my heart she would be. When she was announced winner, I screamed, jumped, cheered, and went close to the podium to hug my former teacher, now principal of her school. Anyone would have thought that she was my sister, or friend or colleague or former school mate. I was so happy.
Well, the confidence the journalists reposed in her was adequately rewarded when she spoke about winning the award. We were impressed that without a speech, she spoke so well.
I was also impressed by her story. She has taught for 12 years – 10 as a PTA teacher. Those who are familiar with unity schools know that because the Federal Government “can no longer do it alone”, parents in the 104 colleges now employ teachers to fill gaps in the teaching cadre. The schools have large populations but the staff strength is not commensurate with the number of pupils. In some schools, the PTA employs over 50 teachers. Since their salaries are drawn from the PTA levies paid each term, the take-home package is not fantastic compared to teachers employed by the Federal Civil Service Commission. Mrs Obi told me the highest she earned as a PTA teacher for 10 years was N24,000. Yet, she was committed and gave her best. When she spoke to journalists about her attitude to work, she said she made efforts to make Chemistry and Mathematics real to her pupils.
“If you teach without your teaching materials, you would not be able to have deep learning in the students. What they would be doing is memorization of facts. But when I teach, I bring in the teaching materials so that they would be able to see what happens in the real life,” she said.
Coming from a teacher who was not well paid yet served for 10 years, I was humbled. I went to bed with a prayer that the Almighty should grant me the grace to pay the price of diligence like Nkemdilim so I can one day be recognised like her.
