Nigeria Union of Teachers

The government and private school owners have been advised to  motivate teachers with attractive salaries.

This advice was given by  a former official of  the Oyo state wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers(NUT),Comrade Olu Abiala on Thursday during the 2023 World Teachers' Day celebration organized by the NUT in badan, Oyo state, Nigeria.

''Public and private school owners need to invest more in teachers' wages and salaries to motivate  teachers to give their best for the development of Nigeria tomorrow. The vision of growth  and development within the time-frame can only  be achieved in Nigeria with the appropriate manpower, and in adequate quantity and quality. Only sincere commitment to investment in the teachers, today in terms of a comprehensive welfare package, can make that dream come true tomorrow.''

In his remarks, the chairman of the union in the state, Comrade Raji Oladimeji  called on the state government to urgently address the issue of shortage of teachers in primary schools in the state.

''May I present the following humble request to teachers for prompt attention and approval from Your Excellency : Urgent  recruitment of qualified and competent teachers to fill the important vacancies in our primary schools across the state'', Comrade Oladimeji stated.

The shabby treatment of teachers by the government and the organized private sector has over the years, affected education at all levels.

There is an urgent need to train and retrain teachers in various educational and developmental programs to attain quality education.

In addition, the creation of a conducive environment, inspiring conditions of service and other incentives would go a long way to aid improved performance, effectiveness and efficiency of teachers.

On the part of the teachers, dedication and devotion to duty ought to be among their guiding lights in the process of grooming pupils and students to become assets, rather than liabilities to society.

Those who are given the responsibilities to impact knowledge, must be kind, understanding and firm, while ruling a line between firmness and harshness.

In addition, the teacher should embark on a continuous learning, reading and experimenting to maintain acceptable standards in the academic performance of pupils and students alike.

Note- The Christian Association of Nigeria(CAN) has declared that the wicked shall not rule the land of Nigeria, while former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan has advised Nigerians not to vote in killers in the 2023 general elections.

Nigerians have been advised to identify criminals in their communities as a crucial step towards addressing the unending insecurity in the land.

This advice was given on Thursday by the chairman of the Oyo state council of the Nigeria Union of Teachers(NUT), Comrade Raji Oladimeji in a chat at the union's state secretariat in Ibadan, Oyo state, Nigeria.

''The spate of insecurity in different parts of the country is alarming. We have to go back to the drawing board. That is why we have to appeal to the parents forum to rejig the security apparatus in our various communities. Schools are located within communities. Let us identify those who constitute a nuisance within the community. Let us also be our brother's keeper,'' Comrade Oladimeji stated.

The chairman vowed to pursue the advancement of the welfare of union members to a logical conclusion, saying, ''believe in your leaders, our constant discussion and engagement with the Government is yielding results, the issue of leave bonuses has been resolved, other issues shall be resolved.''

He commended the state government for reinstating 120 primary school teachers who were previously laid off, adding,'', to us a responsible body, it is a welcome decision, it is a good development.''

The Oyo state Wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers(NUT) says that the office of the Tutor-General is alien to the rules of the state civil service.

Th state  wing of the NUT  made this declaration  last week Saturday  through its state Chairman, Comrade Tojuade Adedoyin at an event to commemorate the 2019 World  Teachers Day in Ibadan.

''The office of the Tutor-General recently  announced by the Honourable Commissioner for Education in the state is strange to existing civil service rules of Oyo state.  Therefore for fairness, equity and justice, the teaching profession should neither be exempted nor isolated from the extant civil service rules'', Comrade Adedoyin stated.

The NUT, however, expressed its gratitude to the state Governor for his approval  of qualified Primary School teachers to be promoted to Grade level 15, adding ''we strongly appeal in furtherance of your unprecedented inclination and love for teachers and the teaching profession that the office of Permanent Secretary(Schools' Administration)should subsist to fill vacancies in al TESCOM  Zonal Offices and among the three  senatorial districts''.

Sadly, a sizable number of teachers, speaking incognito, argued that faulty political appointments was capable of affecting governance negatively.

'' There are several professionals locally, who can deliver, we do not know why they were not engaged'', the teachers wondered.

The general insinuation is that the state government is working to promote unfriendly policies inherited from the immediate past administration, while it also silently introduce certain policies that might not go down well with the people.

The dearth of trained teachers in Oyo state has been blamed on the reluctance of successive administrations in the state to address the problem.

This assertion was made by Reverend J.A Alamu, who was the chairman at an event with theme’’YOUNG TEACHERS, FUTURE OF THE PROFESSION’’, organized by the state council of the Nigeria Union of Teachers(NUT)to commemorate the International Teachers day in Ibadan, Nigeria.

‘’I shall be happy if our present government can look into this. We knew how we recruited teachers in those days, most of whom came into the profession without formal training, but we were committed, we climbed the ladder until we became true professionals. Since the teacher training was abolished, we have run into a problem of not having trained teachers.’’

‘’ This problem can be remedied. If we can’t re-introduce teacher training, we can work hard on training and retraining. All of you who came into the profession between 20 and 30 years ago are retiring, where are we heading to ? The government should do something about it, if we want to make progress in the education sector of this state and Nigeria generally. I hope the present regime under my son, Seyi Makinde will look into this, deliver my message, tell him Alamu said so. May God grant all of us long life to reap the fruits of this great profession,’’ Reverend Alamu concluded.

In his remarks, the Chairman of the NUT in the state, Comrade Tojuade Adedoyin appealed to the state government to as a matter of urgency engage the services of trained, qualified and competent teachers.

‘’Your excellency Sir, let me call your attention to the urgent need for the recruitment of new teachers in both primary and secondary schools in the state. Sir, the current statistics obtained across the state on the dwindling number of our teachers occasioned by the retirement of our teachers without new recruitment several years back needs much to be done by your administration.

‘’This year alone, Sir over two thousand(2,000) teachers have retired as at 30th September, 2019. The leadership of NUT is strongly appealing to the government to urgently employ trained and qualified teachers devoid of much political maneuvering and interference as we believe that the recruitment should be based mostly on merit’’, Comrade Adedoyin stated.

Of worry, is the fact that the shortage of qualified and competent teachers is already taking its toll on the attitude, behavior and activities of pupils and students alike.

Majority of them now use obscene language, as medium of expression, exhibit uncouth behavior and engage in crime as a means to an end.

For better understanding of the almost hopeless situation, most children of school age,primary and secondary school age, particularly residing at, but not limited to Olorunsogo, Molete in Ibadan display behavior and ways of life synonymous with crime. While the girls engage in prostitution, the boys take to various forms of crime. The high rate of drop outs in this community is already a problem. Those yet to drop out, attend both public and private schools.