Primary school teachers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have announced that they will end their extended strike once they receive payment notifications for their overdue salaries.
The strike, which started in March, has continued despite numerous attempts to settle the deadlock.
On Thursday, Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the FCT, convened a meeting with representatives from all six area councils of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) to tackle an ongoing strike. The discussion occurred at his official residence.
At the end of the meeting, union representatives emphasized their demand that salary arrears and other entitlements must be paid before they would consider ending the strike.
After a session of the union's State Wing Executive Council (SWEC), Abdullahi Shafas, Chairman of the FCT chapter of the NUT, spoke to journalists and highlighted the unified stance of teachers.
He stated, "Our members are prepared to return to their classes as soon as they start receiving alerts. If the alerts come in even this evening, the union will call off the strike."
The strike is due to unpaid accumulated salary arrears, unmet entitlements, and the postponed implementation of the new N70,000 minimum wage.
Shafas recognized Wike’s recent intervention, specifically noting the suspension of 10 percent of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) allocations to the six area councils over the past six months. He described this action as a reaction to the councils’ inability to resolve issues raised by teachers.
"The Minister, using his own judgment, has additionally established a committee to address other outstanding demands of the teachers," he added.
The union had earlier formed three distinct agreements with the area council chairmen; however, these commitments have reportedly been neglected, exacerbating the crisis further.
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