UNITY SCHOOL TEACHERS LAMENT HARDSHIP OVER SALARY ARREARS - PUNCH

JIDE AJAKAYE WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO RESUMING AS ONE OF THE NEWLY EMPLOYED TEACHERS OF THE FEDERAL SCIENCE AND TECHNICAL COLLEGE, YABA.

HE GOT HIS EMPLOYMENT LETTER IN APRIL 2013 FROM THE FEDERAL CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION; HE WOULD EARN A LITTLE OVER N50, 000, AFTER ALL THE DEDUCTIONS

ALTHOUGH HE DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH TO SURVIVE BEFORE THE MONTH ENDED, HE WAS HOPEFUL HIS STORY WOULD CHANGE.

HE BORROWED TRANSPORT FARES TO WORK ON THE FIRST WEEK, TELLING HIS CREDITORS HE WAS ABOUT TO BECOME A SALARY EARNER.

BY THE SECOND WEEK WHEN NO ONE WAS READY TO BORROW HIM ANY MORE MONEY, HE TREKKED TO WORK. HE TRIED TO ARRIVE EARLY AND GAVE OVER 350 PUPILS IN HIS CLASS HIS BEST.

BY MONTH-END, HE DID NOT GET ANY ALERT IN HIS BANK ACCOUNT. ANXIOUS AJAKAYE WAITED, CHECKING HIS TEXT MESSAGES EVERY TIME THE PHONE CHIMED.

DAYS TURNED TO WEEKS AND SOON, IT WAS THE END OF ANOTHER MONTH WITHOUT A DIME IN HIS ACCOUNT.

HE SHARED HIS EXPERIENCE WITH HIS SENIOR COLLEAGUES AND WAS TOLD IT WAS NORMAL FOR THE SALARIES OF NEW TEACHERS TO BE DELAYED BECAUSE OF DOCUMENTATION AND INCLUSION IN THE INTEGRATED PERSONNEL AND PAYROLL SYSTEM.

AJAKAIYE TOOK LOANS UPON LOANS, PROMISING HE WOULD SOON BE PAID.

HIS ENTHUSIASM DROPPED, AND SO WAS HIS ATTENTION IN SCHOOL. THE PUPILS ALSO SUFFERED. TWO MONTHS TURNED TO THREE MONTHS, 10 MONTHS, ONE YEAR, TWO YEARS.

“MY ONLY MEANS OF SURVIVAL WAS THE PRIVATE LESSON I DID OUTSIDE SCHOOL HOURS. I ALSO NARRATED WHAT I WAS GOING THROUGH TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY MEMBERS, SHOWING THEM MY EMPLOYMENT LETTER SO THAT THEY WOULD KNOW I WAS NOT LYING. THEY GAVE ME MONEY. IT WAS A HARROWING EXPERIENCE,” HE SAID.

THE 30-YEAR-OLD DID NOT GET PAID UNTIL 30 MONTHS AFTER, AS HE NEARED EATING FROM HAND TO MOUTH TO STAY ALIVE.

A VISIBLY ANGRY AJAKAIYE CLAIMED THAT MOST OFFICIALS IN THE FEDERAL MINISTRY OF EDUCATION REQUESTED KICKBACKS FROM THEM BEFORE THEIR APPOINTMENT WAS PERFECTED, ADDING THAT SOME WORKERS WERE NOT GIVEN EMPLOYMENT LETTERS BECAUSE THEY REFUSED TO BRIBE THE OFFICIALS IN CHARGE.

HE ALLEGED THAT ADMISSION RACKETEERING WAS RIFE IN THE SYSTEM, SAYING THE SITUATION LED TO OVERCROWDING IN CLASSES AS TEACHERS WERE OVERWORKED.

“FROM APRIL 2013 TO OCTOBER 2019, IT’S BEEN MORE THAN SIX YEARS AND MY 30 MONTHS’ ARREARS HAVE NOT BEEN PAID. I AM STILL IN GRADE LEVEL 9. THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION IS A SCAM. EVEN IF THEY DECIDE TO PAY MY SALARY ARREARS TODAY, WHAT IS THE ECONOMIC VALUE?

“I JUST WANT MY MONEY. I CANNOT WORK FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA FOR FREE WHEN SOME PEOPLE ARE BUSY LOOTING THE TREASURY?” HE ADDED.

FORTY-YEAR-OLD SODIQ ALI OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COLLEGE, ILORIN, KWARA STATE, HAS A SIMILAR STORY.

THE FATHER OF FOUR WAS NOT PAID FOR 16 MONTHS AFTER RESUMING WORK IN 2014.

DURING THE PERIOD, HIS FAMILY SUFFERED SHAME AND MOCKERY.

HE BEGGED FRIENDS FOR MONEY TO SURVIVE AS HE TOOK LOANS, HOPING THAT ONE DAY HIS ACCOUNT BALANCE WOULD CHANGE.

“WE WERE WORKING WITHOUT PAYMENT AND ASSIGNED VARIOUS RESPONSIBILITIES AT THE PLACE OF WORK. NOBODY CARED HOW WE FARED. IT GOT TO A POINT THAT WE APPROACHED THE PRINCIPAL OF OUR SCHOOL FOR LOANS. WE TOLD HER WE MIGHT STOP COMING TO WORK. THE SHAME AND DISGRACE WAS UNBEARABLE AS WE BEGGED PEOPLE WE KNOW FOR LOANS,” HE ADDED.

ALI SAID THOUGH HE EVENTUALLY GOT HIS FIRST SALARY IN 2015, HIS ARREARS HAD NOT BEEN PAID. HE NOTED THAT HE HAD YET TO CLEAR THE DEBTS, SUMMING UP HIS ENTITLEMENTS TO OVER N1M.

“TO BE CANDID WITH YOU, THE STANDARD OF EDUCATION WILL CONTINUE TO FALL AS TEACHERS ARE NOT MOTIVATED AND WELL REMUNERATED AT ALL,” HE ADDED.

AJAKAIYE AND ALI ARE ONLY TWO OF THOUSANDS OF TEACHERS ACROSS THE 104 FEDERAL UNITY SCHOOLS IN THE COUNTRY BEING OWED SALARY ARREARS RUNNING INTO SEVERAL MILLIONS OF NAIRA.

SATURDAY PUNCH GATHERED THAT THOSE AFFECTED WERE WORKERS EMPLOYED FROM 2012 TO 2016 AND THE ARREARS VARIED FROM ONE SET TO THE OTHER.

WHILE SOME TEACHERS, LIKE AJAKAIYE, WERE OWED 30 MONTHS’ SALARIES, OTHERS WERE NOT PAID FOR ONE YEAR.

SOME OTHER WORKERS, WHO COULD NOT BEAR THE DISCOMFORT, WERE SAID TO HAVE LEFT THE SYSTEM, FORFEITING THEIR MONEY.

OTHER TEACHERS WHO SPOKE TO OUR CORRESPONDENT SAID INITIALLY, THE DELAY IN PAYMENT WAS ATTRIBUTED TO THE RIGOUR IN THE DOCUMENTATION PROCEDURE.

HOWEVER, AFTER THEY COMPLETED THE PROCESS, THEY WERE SURPRISED THEIR ACCOUNTS WERE STILL NOT CREDITED.

A TEACHER FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COLLEGE, ODOGBOLU, OGUN STATE, JIDE THOMPSON, SAID HE WAS EMPLOYED IN 2012 AND HIS SALARY WAS NOT PAID UNTIL IN 2015.

HE EXPLAINED THAT IN 2015 WHEN PRESIDENT MUHAMMADU BUHARI DIRECTED THAT ALL SALARY ARREARS BE PAID, THE TEACHERS THOUGHT THEY WOULD BE REMEMBERED.

“WE THOUGHT LUCK HAD SMILED ON US, ONLY FOR US TO BE DISAPPOINTED BECAUSE ONLY PROMOTION ARREARS OF SENIOR OFFICERS WERE PAID. WE FELT BETRAYED BY THE UNION WE WERE SUBSUMED UNDER, ASSOCIATION OF SENIOR CIVIL SERVANTS OF NIGERIA. WE THOUGHT THAT THEIR STRUGGLE FOR PAYMENT OF ARREARS INCLUDED US AS NEWLY EMPLOYED WORKERS. ONLY FOR US TO DISCOVER THAT THEY ONLY FOUGHT FOR THEIR PROMOTION ARREARS AND LEFT US TO OUR FATE.

“THE SITUATION BECAME WORRISOME WHEN WE HEARD AND SAW THAT THOSE EMPLOYED IN 2017 AND 2018 HAD STARTED RECEIVING THEIR SALARY ARREARS. UPON ENQUIRIES, WE WERE TOLD THAT THEY GREASED THE PALMS OF SOME PEOPLE IN GOVERNMENT OFFICE TO GET THEIR SALARY ARREARS.

“IN FACT, AN INSIDER AT THE INTEGRATED PERSONNEL AND PAYROLL SYSTEM OFFICE TOLD ONE OF US THAT WHATEVER WAS HAPPENING TO FEDERAL MINISTRY OF EDUCATION TEACHERS’ UNPAID SALARY ARREARS WAS NOT WITHOUT THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOME TOP GUNS IN THE MINISTRY,” HE ADDED.

THOMPSON SAID ASIDE FROM THE SALARIES, THE GOVERNMENT HAD YET TO PAY WHAT HE CALLED 1ST 28 DAYS IN LIEU OF HOTEL ACCOMMODATION.

HE SAID THE MINISTRY AND PRINCIPALS AT UNITY COLLEGES HAD BEEN ARGUING OVER THE PAYMENT, WHICH HE CLAIMED WAS STATED IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE RULES AS THE ENTITLEMENT OF NEWLY EMPLOYED AND REDEPLOYED OFFICERS.

“WE STARTED TO HEAR STORIES OF THE ALLOWANCE BEING A PRIVILEGE THAT ONE MAY GET AND NOT GET. THIS WE SEE AS AN ATTEMPT TO ROB US IN BROAD DAYLIGHT OF OUR ENTITLEMENTS,” HE ADDED.

HE APPEALED TO PRESIDENT MUHAMMADU BUHARI, THE HEAD OF THE FEDERAL CIVIL SERVICE AND OTHER AUTHORITIES TO LOOK INTO THEIR PLIGHT.

THE VICTIMS ALL PLEADED WITH OUR CORRESPONDENT TO PROTECT THEIR IDENTITIES.

A TEACHER AT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COLLEGE, IKIRUN, OSUN STATE, WHO IDENTIFIED HIMSELF ONLY AS JOHN, SAID HE WAS BEING OWED 11 MONTHS.

READ THE FULL STORY IN PUNCH NEWSPAPER.