Unity schools: NUT pushes for Federal Teaching Service Commission

The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has advocated for the establishment of a Federal Teaching Service Commission to enhance the efficiency of service delivery in unity schools.

The call was made by the national president of NUT, Audu Amba, during the inaugural Quadrennial Federal Wing Conference held in Abuja on Tuesday.

Mr. Amba emphasised the need for such a commission to regulate the activities of unity schools, thereby alleviating the workload on the Ministry of Education. The proposed commission, if established, is expected to streamline operations and ensure improved educational outcomes across unity schools nationwide.

“It will interest you to know that we have UBEC and SUBEB. The UBEC is responsible for the management and funding of primary education in the federation.

“While at the state level, we have the State Universal Basic Education Board that is responsible for managing and funding the system at that very level.

“Now at the federal level, we have federal unity schools and under the Federal Ministry of Education which has a lot of agencies under it.

“But if we can get a commission that will be responsible for taking care of federal government colleges, it will reduce the burden on the Ministry,” he explained.

Similarly, the Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Josiah Ajiboye, said there were 112 unity schools nationwide with over 10,000 teachers, hence the need for a regulatory body.

On the welfare of teachers, Mr Ajiboye said it should not be considered a peripheral issue but a central pillar of education reform in Nigeria.

He said this required long-term funding for well-qualified and well-supported teachers to promote the quality and sustainability of education systems.

Earlier, the chairman of the NUT federal wing, Emeka Okonta, said federal school teachers face several challenges, including stagnation, disarticulation of federal schools, and unpaid arrears.

Mr Okonta further said a functional teaching service commission would remove the bottleneck affecting federal teachers’ promotion and restore the lost glory of unity schools in the country.

The federal wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers include teachers in federal government colleges, police schools, Ministry of Defence schools, SSS community schools, and others.