Gov. Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara has directed the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) to release all outstanding promotion letters to primary and junior secondary school teachers in the state.
Ahmed gave the directive on Thursday during a meeting with officials of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) Kwara state Chapter in his office.
The governor therefore directed SUBEB chairman to immediately begin the release of letters to the affected workers at the basic education level in the state.
He also announced his preparedness to consider a return to the tradition of making SUBEB a first line charge on local government allocation in order to prioritise teachers’ salaries.
The governor said this was part of efforts to resolve salary crisis affecting SUBEB workers in the state.
He said that this must however be implemented without hampering the capacity of local government councils to pay workers and pensioners.
He stressed that the delayed in salaries of basic education teachers and local government workers was due to the drop in federal allocation to local government councils in the state.
He informed the labour leaders that he was currently reviewing the cost of paying Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers with a view to incorporating them into the State Teaching Service Commission.
Ahmed said that whatever proportion of the JSS salary obligation was taken over by the state government would result in a reduction of the burden on local government councils.
He said this would improve the capacity of local governments to pay teachers as well as local government workers and pensioners.
He said that the only long term solution to the issue of SUBEB teachers and local government workers’ salary arrears was an improvement in Internally Generated Revenue and the Federal Government’s takeover of basic education funding.
He however said that government was working on other strategies to address the teachers’ salary arrears.
He therefore urged the teachers to shelve their proposed strike in the interest of their pupils and students. (NAN)
