Non-payment of salaries: Niger schools shut as teachers remain at home for second term

Public primary school teachers and their pupils in Niger State have spent the whole of second term at home following the “sit-at-home” directive by the state wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers since January 10 over the percentage salary payment since April 2021. The strike, which was declared by the teachers to press the […]

Public primary school teachers and their pupils in Niger State have spent the whole of second term at home following the “sit-at-home” directive by the state wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers since January 10 over the percentage salary payment since April 2021.

The strike, which was declared by the teachers to press the government to stop the percentage salary payment to them, has not yielded positive results nine weeks after.

The State NUT Chairman, Comrade Akayago Adamu Mohammed, said the strike action was declared after series of ultimatums were given to the state government to respond.

While pupils in private schools are preparing for the second term examination, their counterparts in public primary schools are at home, with many of them not engaged in meaningful activities.

The Chairman Niger State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr. Isah Adamu, was not available for comment as he was said to be out of the state when our correspondent visited his office, while calls put across to him went unanswered. He did not also reply to the messages sent to him.

Consequently, the Niger State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers, Comrade Akayago Adamu Mohammed, said there was yet to be any success in their discussions with the state government.

“There is no success. The government is not ready yet. It is what we have been discussing but the deliberation will continue,” he said.

He said while there were many issues that have triggered the teachers’ strike, the major issue was the percentage salary payment.

Comrade Mohammed said the strike would continue unless the government stopped the percentage salary payment to teachers.

“They know where the problem is. The strike depends on when the government responds. The response from the government would determine when the strike will end,” he said.

One of the teachers in Gbako Local Government Area of the state, Mohammed Aliyu, said the problem of percentage salary payment to primary school teachers in the state dates back to April 2021.

He said “Gbako Local government was paying 80 percent. Those on level 7 receive 25, 000 while those on level 12 receive between 39, 000 and 40, 000.”

“The children are at home doing nothing. While private schools in the state are preparing for the second term examination, pupils of public primary schools have been at home since resumption of the term. The strike had forced the pupils in urban areas into illegal activities. Some of them who have engaged in excavation in the waste bins now indulge in stealing useful materials and sell to make money. If some of them leave home in the morning, parents don’t see them until they return in the evening,” Aliyu added.

A parent, Ahmed Mohammed, said “I feel bad about this strike. The Niger State government doesn’t have good intentions for the poor even though they were voted by the poor. They are just treating the poor the way they like.”

He said he would have removed his children from public primary school and enrolled them in a private school if he had the means.

He said “Our children have been at home since the resumption of second term and Niger State is not doing anything about it. While private schools are moving on with their education, the pupils in public primary schools have been at home for the whole term. These children that have been neglected today would surely become a problem for our society tomorrow. The poor people are suffering and the government doesn’t care.”

Mohammed said he had managed to get his children a lesson teacher who he paid a token to take them through some lessons.

A government official, familiar with the development, told our correspondent in confidence that the percentage salary payment to teachers in primary school was caused by the partial autonomy granted to the Local governments by the current administration in the state.

“That is why you can see the changes in the salaries. Some local governments pay 30 percent, some pay 36, 40, 60, 80 and some even 100 percent. So, it is not centrally determined. It depends on the strength of each local government and it varies according to the way they have their allocation.

“But despite an order by the State House Assembly, directing the Executive arm to reverse to the Joint Account policy, the state government seemed to have remained adamant.”

The State Assembly had recently called on the executive arm to proscribe the partial autonomy granted to the local government councils.

The call followed the inability of some local governments to pay full salaries to workers since the implementation of the partial autonomy.

The call by the Assembly followed a motion of public importance moved by the member representing Bida South, Haruna Dokodza, who argued that the partial autonomy implemented by the executive arm had caused more harm to the administration of the third tiers of the government and should be cancelled.

“As at July 2021, only 13 local councils were able to pay 100 percent of the staff salaries. In August 2021, 15 local government councils met up with 100 percent payment of staff salaries,” he said.

The lawmaker lamented that the staff of the Local Education Authorities were no longer motivated to work, pointing out that “you can imagine what life is for a teacher who was receiving N30, 000 and now collecting N17, 000. That is if he has no commitment with his bank.”

Contributing to the debate, the member representing Bosso, Malik Madaki, maintained that the action of the state government in implementing partial autonomy was unconstitutional, and wondered how workers at the local government level were expected to cope with the hard economic realities with meagre or no wages after serving their local councils.

“It is either you go into autonomy or you don’t operate autonomy. In the Local Government Law, there is no section of the law that specifies anything like partial autonomy. And in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, there is nothing like partial autonomy,” he said.

The House adopted the prayer of the mover of the motion that the partial autonomy be proscribed.

An official of the government familiar with the problem said in confidence that “in as much as the partial autonomy stands, many local governments cannot pay full salaries. But when it is a joint account, salary is the first line charge.”

Daily Trust Saturday gathered that in Niger South, comprising eight local governments of Bida, Gbako, Katcha, Agaie, Lapai, Edati, Lavun and Mokwa, only two local governments (Edati and Mokwa) have been able to pay 100 percent salaries.

This is due to the staff strength and additional revenue accrued to the local councils.

A data obtained by Daily Trust showed that Edati has 619 primary school teachers across its 107 primary schools while Mokwa Local Government has only 937 teachers in 206 primary schools.

Other local government areas in Niger South were Agaie LGA with 1, 014 teachers, Bida LGA (1, 391), Gbako LGA (609), Lapai LGA (834), Lavun LGA (1, 291) while Katcha LGA (1, 345).

In Niger East, Bosso has 1, 333 teachers, Munya LGA (539), Paikoro LGA (1, 332), Chanchaga LGA (2, 295), Suleja LGA (831), Tafa LGA (645), Rafi LGA (559), Shiroro LGA (1, 609) while Gurara LGA has 831 teachers.

In Niger North, Daily Trust investigation revealed that Kontagora LGA has 661 teachers, Magama LGA (576), Rijau LGA (453), Borgu LGA (1, 054), Mariga LGA (567), Wushishi LGA (296), Mashegu LGA (409) while Agwara LGA with 372 teachers.

A Local Government official also told our correspondent in confidence that “the percentage salary payment was also caused by the staff strength of the affected local government. It has to do with staff that each local government has and the allocation that is being given to them.”

He added that “When the joint account existed, centrally, the allocation would be brought to the central table and all the salaries be paid before the remaining balance is shared. While Local Government Areas in Niger South and Niger East have huge staff strength, they lack financial strength to pay their staff, necessitating the percentage payment. The joint account was saving the situation because if the allocation is put in the joint account, the salaries would first be deducted, which was why all these problems didn’t arise.  As long as they do not revert to a joint account, this problem would persist.”

But practically, the local governments in zone C don’t want a reversal to the joint account.

The Nigeria Labour Congress, Niger State Chapter, in a communique signed by its Chairman, Comrade Yakubu Garba, expressed shock over the state government’s silence since the primary school teachers began the strike.

“The NLC is shocked by the lack of concern shown by the Alh. Abubakar Sani Bello-led administration over the plight of primary school pupils and teachers who have been at home for the past 8 weeks in protest of payment of salaries on percentage basis,” the communique read in part.

Comrade Garba said, “the stand taken by the Ministry for Local Government and Joint Account Committee in administering the content of FAAC redistribution which birthed the unfortunate payment of salaries on percentage to staff of some LGAs was misleading and illegal. The action contradicts the existing legislation of Niger State House of Assembly Joint Account Laws; Principal Law Section 3 as Amended 2001.”

Labour alleged that despite several appeals for Governor Abubakar Sani Bello to intervene to stop the illegal payment of salaries on percentage, the problem still lingered.

The Labour Congress said effective from February 2022, the Ministry for Local Government should abide by the State Joint Local Government Accounts Laws (Section 3 of the Principal Law as Amended February, 2001) in wholesome for the payment of salaries while the payment of salaries across the 25 LGAS in Niger State be made a first line charge, among others.