Due to failure of the government to pay primary school teachers in Cross River State their four months salary arrears, the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) in the state, on Thursday directed its members to stay at home pending when salaries would be paid.
This came few weeks after the state’s government announced its plan to recruit additional one thousand teachers (1000) in Cross River.
In a circular tagged ‘Bulletin 1’, pasted at the entrance of primary schools within Calabar, the union directed its members to stay at home pending when they receive at least, two months’ salary.
“In view of the non-payment of salaries to our members in the primary schools now for the fourth month running, the financial embarrassment of our members not being able to provide for the basic necessities of life and no means of transporting themselves to work
“The union, in her emergency standing committee meeting of 9th September, 2016, resolved that the state government should postpone the resumption of schools to a later date to enable salaries for at least, two months be paid to our primary school members.
“Our members are please solicited to show understanding with the state government and remain at home pending when our primary school members are paid, because injury to one is injury to all”, the circular read in part.
However, when contacted via their respective telephone lines, both the union’s chairman in the state, Comrade Eyo Nsa, and the state’s commissioner for education, Mr. Goddy Etta, could not be reached for comment on the matter.
Checks by newsmen in Calabar, indicate that most of the public primary schools in the state that were supposed to resume academic activities on Wednesday 14, 2016, were still under lock and key.
