The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has expressed appreciation to the
Kwara State Governor, Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq for selecting two
classroom teachers as commissioner nominees.
The teachers, who are both women, are Deborah Bosede Aremu of ECWA
Secondary School, Omu-Aran (Irepodun Local Government Area) and Mrs.
Ahmad Bisola of Sheikh Abdulsalam Junior Secondary School, Ilorin
(Ilorin West Local Government Area).
The union described the governor’s action as unprecedented in the
history of the state, adding that the highest a teacher had ever
attained was that of a permanent secretary.
Speaking on the development, the Kwara State NUT Chairman, Comrade
Saliu Toyin said: “The Governor has done a thing that has never
happened in the history of the state – picking serving teachers for
the time to be commissioner nominee. The highest that happened in the
past was principal being made permanent secretary.
“For the governor to have nominated teachers for commissionership
shows that he recognises the worth of teachers, because we taught all
of them. So if a governor should come and recognise us it is a good
thing.
The NUT also urged the government to accord teachers in the state’s
Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM) and State Universal Basic
Education Board (SUBEB) equal treatment with their counterparts in the
civil service.
He lamented that promotion arrears of both SUBEB and TESCOM teachers
between 2015 and 2017 was about N37.3 million.
He said: “However, as good as it is, for this set of teachers to
perform wonderfully well, the governor should try as a matter of
urgency, to raise the welfare of teachers to level of other civil
servants in the state. The teachers under the state government-
Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM) – have been owed about five
months’ promotion. No other civil servant is badly treated.
“Also teachers under Kwara SUBEB are drawing their salaries from the
local government account. Their own promotion too is at par with local
government employees.
“What we are saying in essence is that before the minimum wage comes
in Governor Abdulrazaq should try to allow teachers to be on the same
level with other core civil servants. So picking teachers is a welcome
development and we promise that we are not going to let the government
down. We hope our especially the teachers among them will perform. We
have done it before and we are going to do it this time around.”
