JUST IN: Akwa Ibom Teachers Begin Indefinite Strike
According to reports, Akwa Ibom teachers has began an indefinite strike.
Primary and secondary school teachers in Akwa Ibom State have begun an indefinite strike, to ask for better welfare.
A statement yesterday by the Senior State Secretary of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Victor Amirize, said the strike became necessary, following the failure of the government to meet their demands.
“The NUT hereby orders all public primary and secondary schools to proceed on an indefinite strike,” the statement said.
A crucial part of the demands being pressed by the union was that the Akwa Ibom State Government Teachers’ Amnesty Programme should be reopened to cover the teachers that were left out during the last amnesty programme.
“The teachers are also demanding the appointment of teachers as permanent secretaries, as well as promotion results of teachers who attended the exercise in 2020 should be released without recourse to a pass in the Administrative Professional Officers Compulsory Examination, because this was not demanded at the point of the interview,” the statement added.
Other demands include: “Refund of 7% contributory pension to primary school teachers; payment of gratuity/harmonisation of pension to retired teachers; payment of 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021 annual leave grant to primary school teachers”.
They are also demanding the payment promotion arrears of six years, from 2011 – 2016, for primary schools teachers; and the release of 2017 and 2018 promotion exercise conducted by SUBEB, as well as the immediate commencement of 2019, 2020, 2021 promotion exercise.
Justifying the strike, the NUT claimed that the state government could not address the demands of the teachers after 21 days and a subsequent seven-day ultimatum issued by the union to the government.
The union thus expressed dismay that the government’s promise of payment of one year leave on compassionate ground, and completion of payment of one-month minimum wage arrears to primary school teachers could not be actualised.
The union, therefore, made a strong appeal to parents and pupils for understanding, as the government’s insensitivity to the teachers’ plight had expediently pushed the NUT to summon teachers for the industrial action.
