Abuja: The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Federal Capital Territory (FCT), may soon call off the three-month primary school teachers’ strike, following the intervention of the FCT Minister Nyesom Wike. Chief of Staff to the minister, Mr. Chidi Amadi, disclosed this after a closed-door meeting with the area council chairmen, leadership of the NUT, and representatives of the FCT Administration.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, other participants at the meeting included representatives of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANs) and the National Assembly. Amadi explained that the meeting was convened by the minister, in addition to previous interventions to find a lasting solution to the prolonged teachers’ strike. After extensive deliberation, a decision was reached to put the issues to rest.
He announced that part of the resolution was to withhold the 10 percent accrued Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the area councils for the past six months. The funds would be used to settle 70 percent of the minimum wage owed to the teachers. Although it will not cover 100 percent of the debt for now, it will cover about 70 percent. This step is aimed at addressing the fracas once and for all.
The chief of staff added that the minister had also directed that a Special Committee be constituted, composed of three members of NUT, two members from FCTA, one of the area council chairmen, and a representative of NANs. The committee would revisit all other outstanding issues and within the next two weeks, submit a report detailing how these issues would be permanently addressed.
In addition to addressing the issues of the primary school teachers, Wike had taken a decision to address all outstanding issues of the local government employees. The minister pledged to personally intervene to ensure that their demands are addressed by the FCTA. This is to ensure that the area councils resume full operations effectively immediately.
Speaking on behalf of the area council chairmen, Mr. Abubakar Abdullahi acknowledged the resolution, saying that although it was not in favor of the area councils, it was necessary to resolve the issues. He appealed to NUT to consider the children and call off the strike, highlighting that the chairmen had agreed to allocate the 10 percent IGR to the teachers despite not being legally obliged to do so.
Also, the National President of NANs, Olushola Oladoja, lauded the resolutions and expressed hope that the outcome would finally resolve the matter, allowing teachers to return to class. Oladoja commended the minister for taking the initiative, acknowledging that the council chairmen could legally challenge the decision but chose not to for the greater good.
On his part, the NUT Chairman, Mohammed Shafa, acknowledged the deliberation but mentioned he would refer the matter to the NUT State Executive Council, where the final decision would be taken. The teachers had embarked on the strike in March over non-implementation of minimum wage, among other issues related to pay increases and allowances.