By Bukola Olamona
|
The Ondo state Commissioner for Education,Science and Technology, Mr Femi Agagu has assured the National Union of Teacher’s (NUT) that the present government in the state would do what is right to ensure that education takes its rightful place in the state.
The Commissioner who was represented by the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Rev Akin Asaniyan said the State government led by Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN) is proactive on any issue of education, as the issue raised by them will be made a priority.
“If there are no hands, there will not be quality service delivery, hence the need for the government to harken to the voice of teachers as they are not fighting for their welfare this time around but what will benefit all” he stated.
He said”I am happy with the NUT for taking their course with prayers to God instead of being confrontational, as without prayers, I doubt if anything will happen, and with God all things are possible”.
He admonished them to give the government some time as there is economic downturn in the state, adding that when things improves, the education sector will be a force to be reckoned with.
Earlier, the State Chairman of the NUT, comrade Victor Amoko, said the teachers decided not to celebrate the event this year but to pray to God to intervene in the education sector, particularly for the primary education not to collapse in the state.
According to him “We believe God has the power to do what no man can do, as we cannot employ teachers, only government can hence the need to pray to God who said the heart of the king is in his hand.
”As I am speaking with you now, we have almost 7,000 plus vacancies in the primary schools schools and we have only 7,000 on the field, so that is that problem”he said.
The chairman who said they decided to pray instead of protesting, added that there is no political undertone in what they have done but to ensure that the future of tomorrow’s leaders are not truncated.
He said if the problem in the primary education is not addressed it may lead to imminent collapse in the sector.
The representative of the Parent’s Teachers Association (PTA), Prophet Babatunde Isaac Oke who said though the issue of vacancies in primary schools started from the past said the government of the day should as a matter of urgency declare a state of emergency in the sector.
He decried the issue of employing N-power teachers who are not professionals while the qualified teachers are unemployed.
“They are destroying the sector, the government should employ the qualified ones, instead of the N-power teachers who were helped by politicians and only collect salary but not doing the job”
He therefore appreciated the teachers for what they have been doing and for not fighting for their pocket but for the future leaders of the state.
Prayers were rendered for the education sector.
The annual World Teachers Day that used to be celebrated amid pomp and pageantry was done in a low key this year in Ondo State.
This year’s low keyed celebration which was carried out in all the 18 local governments areas of the state at the Secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Oda road, Akure.
The theme for this years World Teachers Day was ” The right to education means the right to a qualified teacher”.
