National Daily

No TSS, no end to strike —NUT

APPARENTLY tired of lip service by government, protesting teachers have vowed never to end strike until the issuance of the enabling federal circular creating the Teachers Salary Scale (TSS) as distinct a pay package for all grades of teachers in primary and secondary.

The NUT Chairman, Michael Alogba Olukoya who made this known to the National Daily on phone last week, explained that NUT was compelled to picket private schools as a way of making government to attend to the demands of the teachers.
According to him, “who are the proprietors of those private schools and whose children are in those private schools, are they not children of the rich? Because their children and wards are not being affected by the strike, they refuse to join teachers in public schools to achieve the demands which in the long run will extend to the teachers in private schools too. “The only way to touch the heart of government was to close down the private schools that are being attended by their children to the detriment of the masses in public schools.

Olukoya, who is also the chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Lagos State chapter, said the unions have on day one of the operation close down private schools picketed 11 schools, just as he stated reiterated that unless government issue the enabling federal circular creating the TSS, the strike would not be continue.

It would be recalled that NLC both in federal and Lagos State levels, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) Zone D 2007/2008 regime, Labour and Civil Society Coalition (LASCO) and other well meaning Nigerians last week vowed to grand all primary and secondary schools across the country.

Speaking in a press conference organised last week to announce the nationwide picketing exercise, the Convener United Action for Democracy (UAD) Comrade Abiodun Aremu, told Nigerians the unions would not be deterred with the attempt by Federal Government to break rank of the NUT.

Aremu who is also the Secretary of Joint Action Forum (JAF) emphasised that the coalition of market men and women, and other civil societies would continue with the strike and also picket private schools and Federal Government's own public schools.
Similarly the Zone D Coordinator of NANS, Comrade Oyewole Bamidele Peter, told the National Daily that the union was not happy with the way and manner three tiers of governments were going about the problem, saying “when two elephants fights the grass will suffer, the refusal of government to address this problem is affecting school children.

Aremu and Bamidele urged government to unconditionally comply with the demand of NUT, saying “we are not asking for too much nether are we demanding for what is outside the reach of the government.
Likewise, the Assistant Secretary Organising Department, NLC, Denja Yaqub, assured the NUT, NANS and LACOS of the support of NLC to fight the battle to a peaceful resolution.

It would also be recalled that in a release signed by Deputy President Onem Nelson and Secretary General Ikpe Obong of NUT, sent to National Daily, stressed “What NUT wants now is the Federal Government's implementation of the Teachers Salary Scale by issuing the enabling circular with respect to its teachers. This is consistent with the understanding reached by the Federal and state governments represented by the Ministers of Education and the 36 Commissioners for Education.

Having pioneered the professionalisation of teaching through the setting up of the Teachers' Registration Council of Nigeria, a federal agency, the logical step should be the institution of a professional salary structure exclusive for teachers. Placing the onus of creating the TSS on the Federal Government is consistent with its standard-setting role. The logic of federalism does not imply that educational standards, including on teachers' remuneration, should be deregulated.