By Patrick Idowu
The Chairman of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Comrade Abdullahi Mohammed Shafas, has warned that pupils currently in Primary Six across public schools in the territory may not be admitted into Junior Secondary School (JSS), 1 this academic year if the ongoing teachers’ strike continues.
Shafas issued the warning during a phone-in programme on the network service of Radio Nigeria, monitored by Abuja City Journal.
He expressed concern that the prolonged strike, caused by the failure of the six area council chairmen to address the demands of primary school teachers, may lead to the loss of an entire academic session for affected pupils.
According to him, three separate agreements had been reached with the area council chairmen in the past, but none were honoured.
“You see, due to the lukewarm attitude of our council chairmen, they have refused to take responsibility for paying what is owed. They continue to turn a deaf ear to our demands,” Shafas lamented.
He questioned the fairness of the situation, saying: “Don’t we live in the same FCT? Are we not suffering the same economic realities? Am I not a teacher? Don’t I leave my community and fuel my car to get to school like everyone else?”
Shafas further noted that, while the new minimum wage has been implemented for teachers in junior and senior secondary schools as well as other civil servants and government agencies, primary school teachers have been excluded.
“They left out those who are supposed to build the foundation of education,” he said.
Highlighting the impact of the over two-month-long strike, Shafas stressed that unless the government acts swiftly, there may be no new admissions into JSS 1 in the upcoming academic session.
“This means only children from private schools may be able to proceed, leaving out the children of the poor, particularly in rural communities,” he said.
He called on the relevant authorities to act immediately to prevent a collapse in the basic education system in the FCT.
