Wike to Meet FCT Area Council Chairmen, NUT, NANS to Finalise Reopening of Public Schools

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr. Nyesom Wike, is set to meet with the chairmen of the FCT area councils, leadership of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), and the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) on Thursday to finalise arrangements for the reopening of all public primary schools in the territory.

The development was confirmed in a statement jointly signed by the NANS National President, Olushola Oladoja, and the association’s National Public Relations Officer, Adeyemi Ajasa.

NANS explained that the planned meeting follows a series of engagements aimed at resolving the ongoing industrial action by primary school teachers in the FCT.

The association noted that it had initially resolved to embark on a mass protest on Wednesday morning at the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) Secretariat to demand urgent action.

However, the students’ body said its leadership was invited to a high-level dialogue at the Department of State Services (DSS) Headquarters, where issues surrounding the teachers’ strike were discussed extensively in the interest of national security and students’ welfare.

The association revealed that this initial meeting paved the way for further discussions with the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on FCT, Hon. Muktar Betara, as well as a follow-up meeting with the FCT Minister on Tuesday.

Providing context, NANS explained that Wike clarified during the meetings that the FCT is the only unit in the federation operating full local government autonomy. As such, salary payments, including those of primary school teachers, are the sole responsibility of the area councils, not the FCTA.

“The FCT Administration is not directly responsible for the backlog of teachers’ salaries and therefore should not be held solely accountable for the inadequacies of the area councils,” the statement read.

In a bid to resolve the crisis, Wike proposed a bailout arrangement under which the FCTA would pay 60 per cent of the outstanding salary arrears while the area councils would cover the remaining 40 per cent.

When this arrangement did not yield the desired results, the minister withheld the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the area councils for May and June, intending to use the funds to clear the outstanding 40 per cent owed to teachers.

According to the statement, it is expected that the withheld funds will be ready before the end of the week to address the backlog of salaries and facilitate the reopening of schools.

In light of these developments, NANS announced the suspension of its planned protest while monitoring the implementation of all resolutions reached.

“We reaffirm our commitment to defending the rights of Nigerian students and ensuring that no child is denied access to education due to governmental lapses,” the statement concluded.