By; PATRICK TITUS, Uyo
Public primary and secondary schools’ teachers in Akwa Ibom State have been directed to resume duties from Monday following the suspension of an indefinite strike action they embarked on from Wednesday last week.
A statement jointly signed by the Chairman of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Akwa Ibom State, Comrade Edet Emenyi and Secretary, Comrade Victor Amirize respectively, stated that the suspension of the earlier action against the state government followed negotiations reached between government and the union at the weekend.
According to the statement, Governor Udom Emmanuel who led the government team and Comrade Edet Emenyi who led the NUT team resolved on all the demands made by the Union as reasons for the indefinite strike.
Some of it read, “immediate commencement of payment of leave grants for 2017 and 2018; immediate commencement of one month minimum wage arears to primary school teachers.
“Appointment of a committee comprising of NUT, NLC and government representatives to dialogue on the template for instalmental payment of 2019, 2020 and 2021 leave grants to primary school teachers and promotions arrears for six years covering 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016”.
Meanwhile, checks revealed that very few teachers adhered to the directive by the union leaders directing them to resume normal academic activities from Monday.
Few who reported to duties spent the day to supervise to cleaning of the littered school classrooms and environments by pupils following the commencement of the strike from midnight of Tuesday last week.
At Saint Phillips Primary School, Use Offot, Nwaniba Road, Uyo, one of the teachers who spoke to our Correspondent on condition of anonymity on why pupils were seen loitering around, said, “normal classes cannot resume today because the classrooms and even the general environment were dusty and unkempt, and not suitable for learning.”
