By Joyce Remi-Babayeju
Following an urgent intervention by the FCT Minister , Barr. Nysome Wike, with Councils members in Abuja, FCT Primary School teachers are ready to end the over three months strike action which had shut School children out of their classrooms.
Speaking on Thursday, the Chief of Staff to the Minister, Mr. Chidi Amadi, gave this hint after a closed—door meeting initiated by the FCT minister in Abuja, with area council chairmen, leaders of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), representatives of the FCT Administration, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), and the National Assembly.
Amadi explained that the aim of the Minister’s intervention, was to resolve critical and long-standing issues that led to the strike action and the shutdown of public primary schools across the FCT.
He said, “Following extensive deliberations, the parties agreed to release the 10 percent accrued Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the area councils for the past six months to pay off about 70 percent of the outstanding minimum wage owed to the teachers.”
“Although this will not cover 100 percent of the arrears, it will settle a significant portion, marking a major step toward ending the strike permanently,” Amadi said.
According to him, Wike had directed the constitution of a Special Committee comprising three NUT members, two FCTA representatives, one Area Council Chairman and a representative of NANS to address other unresolved issues. The committee is expected to submit its final report within two weeks with recommendations on how to clear the remaining debts and prevent future disputes.”
“The Minister is not only concerned about the plight of the teachers but is also committed to addressing outstanding issues affecting all local government employees. His priority is to ensure the area councils function optimally and schools reopen immediately,” Amadi stressed.
Furthermore, the Area Council Chairmen, Abubakar Abdullahi who spoke on behalf of his colleagues confirmed the resolution, adding that withholding the IGR would strain council finances, stating that it was a necessary sacrifice to secure the education of children across the FCT.
“Six months of our IGR has been committed to resolving this crisis. We appeal to the NUT to consider the future of our children and call off this strike immediately. The Minister has done his part even though, by law, he has no right to withhold the IGR. We agreed collectively because we all want this issue resolved,” Abdullahi stated.
He expressed optimism that the strike would be called off before Friday, to ensure pupils to return to their classrooms without further delay.
The National President of NANS, Olushola Oladoja, welcomed the resolution, and thanked the FCT Minister Wike for taking the bold step to settle a long – standing crisis that has kept thousands of schpol children at home.
“Any council chairman could have challenged the Minister’s action in court, but they all agreed because they wanted peace. We commend them for putting the interest of the students first,” Oladoja added.
However, the NUT Chairman, Mr. Mohammed Shafa, who acknowledged the new commitment, disclosed that the union’s State Executive Council would meet to take a final decision on calling off the strike.
Daybreak reports that the strike action, which commenced in March, was due to issues like the non-implementation of the minimum wage, non-payment of approved salary increments, and the failure to honour a 2022 agreement on teachers’ entitlements and allowances.
With the strike call- off by the council, it is expected that classrooms will be opened, with the return of pupils and teachers back to schools.
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