. . . Backs strike by FCT teachers

By TINA TIMOTHY

The Save Public Education Campaign (SPEC) has described the non-payment of accrued entitlements of primary school “teachers who work hard day and night” as an act of wickedness.

SPEC, in a press statement on Thursday January 18, 2024, signed by its Secretary, Damilola Owot, also declared support for the ongoing strike action of the primary school teachers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja as directed by the FCT Wing if the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT).

“The Save Public Education Campaign (SPEC) supports the ongoing strike action of the primary school teachers in FCT Abuja. The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Federal Capital Territory Wing, has directed primary school teachers in the territory to resume strike on 15 January at the end of an emergency meeting of the FCT Wing Standing Committee, held in Abuja on Friday, 12thJanuary 2024.

“The primary school teachers had earlier embarked on an indefinite strike on 11 September 2023, over non-implementation of 40 per cent Peculiar Allowance and payment of 25 months minimum wage arrears, among other issues. We support this struggle and call on the striking teachers to back up the strike with action to also attract other workers to join in solidarity until victory is achieved.

“According to the report the union had embarked on an indefinite strike on 11 September 2023, over non-implementation of 40 per cent Peculiar Allowance and payment of 25 months minimum wage arrears, among other issues. The union later suspended the strike on 2 October 2023 for six weeks to allow for the resolution of the issues, following the intervention of FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike”, the statement reads.

SPEC further lamented that the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, who assured that he would look into the issues with a bid to sort out the problem, which prompted the teachers to suspend their earlier strike in October 2023, is yet to act despite his committee submitting their report since November 2023.

The statement continues: “Mr Wike who has put it in the public that he had set up a six-man committee to look into the issues and recommend solutions which may solve the problem hasn’t done anything even after the reports of the committee have been submitted. Rather, the minister was seen casting blame on the Area Council chairpersons and urged them to be more alive to their duties.

“After the six weeks had elapsed since November 2023, nothing positive has been achieved, even though the committee had submitted its report. The union had no option but to resume the strike on Monday, Jan 15 indefinitely.”

While condemning the non-payment by the FCT Administration, the group supported the decision of the union of FCT secondary school teachers to join the strike in solidarity from January 22, called on “government to meet all the teachers’ demands”, and called “for proper funding of public education at all levels and better pay for all academic workers.”

“We condemn this non-payment of workers’ entitlements by the Federal Capital Territory Administration. For an FCT/Area Council administration with all the revenue generated both from tax and federal government allocation. It is an act of wickedness that teachers who work hard day and night are not being paid their entitlements.

“We welcome the decision of the union on the secondary school teachers of the FCT to join the strike in solidarity from the 22ndof January if the demands of the primary school teachers are not met before 19 January 2024. We propose that the strike action must also be used to demand adequate security in all area councils because of the continued robbery and kidnapping that has enveloped the FCT.

“For us at Save Public Education Campaign, we hold that the strike should extend beyond the issues of entitlements for teachers and include the demand for better teaching and learning facilities for primary and secondary schools in Abuja. We believe that a demand for adequate funding of public education in Nigeria is as important as life itself now.

“We call on the government to meet all the teachers’ demands and we also call for proper funding of public education at all levels and better pay for all academic workers.

“To win this struggle, a strike of the primary and secondary school teachers might not be enough. There must be an Open solidarity from other education unions within and outside the FCT and all the workers” unions,” Owot further stated.

“We call on NLC and TUC to intervene and mobilize workers in solidarity to join this teachers and education struggle. We believe the teachers can win this solidarity and public support through public actions and not only sit-at-home strike actions. Activities like rallies and street protests are also important to inform the public of their demands and expose the irresponsibility of the Government that has kept children at home,” he added.