The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has decried the loss of 173 teachers to Boko Haram insurgents in North-East.
The National President of NUT, Mr Michael Olukoya, decried the death of the teachers when he spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Uyo on Friday.
Olukoya expressed regrets that the union lost 170 teachers in Borno and three in Yobe to Boko Haram attacks.
He also decried the continued detention of the Chibok schoolgirls by the insurgents and the unabated siege of the school system by Boko Haram in the country.
The NUT president called on the Federal Government to expend all resources available to free the abducted schoolgirls and save them from the psychological trauma.
“Government should appropriately police the school environment for the security of pupils and teachers and create conducive learning environment for quality education delivery,” Olukoya said.
He urged governments at all levels to provide schools within their jurisdiction with perimeter fencing and security personnel at all times.
The conference, according to him, had called on the Federal Ministry of Education to incorporate the crèche system into the national educational policy and practice in Nigeria.
He emphasised that the issue of early childhood education should be given top priority in the country.
Olukoya complained of non-payment of 27.5 per cent teachers salary scale (TSS) allowance to teachers in unity schools.
He said that teachers in the unity schools would soon embark on strike, adding that all teachers nationwide would embark on sympathy-strike if the situation persists.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that conference was its fifth quadrennial meeting with the theme, “Changing Nigeria’s fortune through quality teachers’’. (NAN)
