Adamawa Post-Primary School Teachers Protest 25 Months Unpaid Salaries

Post primary school teachers, tagged Batch D2, in Adamawa State, on Friday took to the streets of Yola in protest to demand their 25 months’ unpaid salaries.

Spokesperson of the group, Umar Mukhtar, said since their recruitment in 2012, they were only paid once, and that even then, they were paid half month salary.

The teachers, who are about 3,000 in number, were employed with diploma certificates as against the NCE certificate, which is the minimum requirement for teaching in primary schools in the state.

“Even if they don’t want our services, they should at least pay our 25 months’ salaries.  How can a family man survive without salary for two years? We were employed by government, after going through series of verifications and were given identity cards and personal subhead numbers. So what is our offence? If government did not want diploma graduates to teach in its schools, why did it employ us in the first place”, Umar said.

The protesters’ spokesperson argued that the Ngillari administration in the state should not blame the D2 teachers for accepting the offer by the Nyako government and should therefore, pay their entitlements.

Director of Press and Public Affairs in the Adamawa State Government House, Phineas Elisha, had told journalists earlier that government could not pay the salaries of Batch D2 teachers, because they do not have the minimum teaching qualification of NCE.

Elisha pointed out that though approval was given for recruitment of 3,490 teachers by the Nyako administration, the Post Primary Board illegally recruited additional 9,494.

“Despite the illegality, the state government decided to absorb the surplus except those who were not qualified. A screening committee disqualified about 3,000 who were tagged D2 Batch and their salaries have not been paid because of controversy surrounding their employment. However, Governor Ngillari has resolved to give them non-teaching jobs when there is vacancy for such”, he said.