Education
NUT tasks NASS on Teachers 65 Years Retirement Age Bill Passage
The Nigeria Teachers Union (NUT), has urged the National Assembly to expedite action on passage of the Harmonised Retirement Age for Teachers in Nigeria Bill 2021.
Dr Mike Ike-Ene, the Secretary-General of NUT, made the appeal in an interview on Thursday in Abuja.
He said the passage of the bill and its eventual signing into law by the President would go a long way in giving teachers the hope that their profession was being given the needed attention.
Ike-Ene said the hope of passage of the bill in June 30, having been mentioned on the Order Paper, was dashed because of the controversy that followed the debate on the Petroleum Industry Bill, now an Act.
“We are expecting that as the National Assembly has resumed, the bill will be one of the first few bills to be passed.
“We expected the bill to be passed on June 30 concurrently by the two houses having been mentioned on the Order Paper but the debate of the Petroleum Industry Act and debate of the Electoral Reform Bill took the day.’’
The Secretary-General commended the National Assembly for its commitment to ensuring conclusion of work on the bill.
He expressed optimism that when passed, President Buhari would not hesitate in signing it into law.
He thanked the President for the effort to reposition the teaching profession, saying the union had been in the forefront in the struggle for elongation of tenure for teachers among other things.
According to him, we have actually been fighting for some of the things the President promised to do for teachers for instance the elongation of years.
“We have been agitating for 65 years retirement age or 40 years by service and one of the reasons for the agitation is that we discovered that about 26 states did not recruit a single teacher for over 20 years.
“Yet teachers were retiring in their dozens, in hundreds and more deaths were being recorded as a result of the growing insecurity particularly in schools.
“Some died naturally, others were resigning, yet teachers were not being employed.”
He further said, “We have also been agitating for Teachers Special Salary Structure (TSS) but hazard allowance was granted instead.
“The hazard allowance accumulated to 27.5 per cent of the basic of teachers’ salaries which were not what we were agitating for.
“We thank God that the Buhari’s administration has promised to implement the TSS and since that pronouncement, NUT, government and other stakeholders have been working to ensure implementation.’’
Ike-Ene disclosed that the promise made to teachers by the president would be implemented at different levels, stressing that while some would be passed into law, others would be implemented as policies.
Reports that President Muhammadu Buhari had in June, transmitted a letter on a Bill to increase the retirement age for teachers from 60 years to 65 years.
The Bill also seeks to extend the years of service for teachers from 35years to 40 years.
Meanwhile, the president at the commemoration of the World Teachers Day on October 5, 2020, approved a special salary scale for teachers and special pension scheme.
He also said the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) will begin to fund teaching practice in universities and colleges of education.
He further promised to ensure provisions for rural posting allowance, science teachers allowance and peculiar allowance.
The president also promised sponsorship of at least one refresher training, construction of low-cost housing for teachers in rural areas and reintroduction of bursary award.
Other promises are, expansion of the annual Presidential Teachers and Schools Awards and payment of stipends to Bachelor of Education students and automatic employment after graduation. (NAN)
The National Examinations Council (NECO) has re-scheduled the 2024 National Common Entrance Examination into Federal Unity Colleges and the entrance examination into Federal Government Academy, Suleja.
This is contained in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday by Azeez Sani, acting Director, Information and Digital Communication of the council.
Sani stated that the common entrance examination earlier scheduled for April 20, 2024, would now hold on June 1, 2024.
He also said that the entrance examination for Gifted and Talented Children into Federal Government Academy, Suleja, earlier scheduled to hold on May 4,
2024 would now hold on May 25, 2024.
He added that the rescheduling of the two examinations was due to low enrollment of candidates.
He enjoined candidates, parents, guardians, schools and relevant stakeholders to take note of the new dates.
Sani said that registration of candidates would continue till the new dates of the examinations. (NAN)
By Eddy Ochigbo
No fewer than six Nigerian Universities have been selected to benefit from the 15 Intra-Africa Mobility Scheme Projects funded by the European Union (EU) with €27 million under the flagship Youth Mobility for Africa.
Permanent Secretary, of the Federal Ministry of Education, Mrs.
Didi Walson-Jack, who signed the agreement at the Global Gateway High-Level Event on Education in Brussels, said Nigeria would also benefit from the regional Team Europe Initiative on Opportunity-driven Skills, Vocational Education and Training in AfricaUnder the initiative, the European Union would spend €27 million, allocating €1.
8 million to each of the Projects in the education and healthcare sectors in Africa.These Projects, which are to be facilitated by various Universities, aim to enhance learning mobility opportunities for Students, Trainees, and Staff across the Continent, focusing on developing high-level green and digital skills.
The participating Universities include the University of Lagos, the University of Port-Harcourt, Ebonyi State University, the Federal University of Technology, and the University of Nigeria.
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and the police have warned candidates preparing for the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) against patronising fake websites.
The two bodies gave the warning at a joint news conference in Abuja on Saturday.
The Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, said there were several fake websites created by unscrupulous individuals with the intention of misleading candidates.
He urged candidates to be wary of their tactics, saying the fake web sites were designed to deceive innocent candidates into providing personal details such as registration numbers, email addresses, and phone numbers.
“Both JAMB and the Nigeria Police Force condemn these fraudulent activities and hereby reiterate the readiness to safeguard the interests of candidates and maintain the integrity of the examination process.
“We urge parents, guardians, and all stakeholders to ensure that candidates print their UTME Notification Slips only from the Board’s approved website: www.jamb.gov.ng.
“Candidates can print their slips from the comfort of their homes or visit any of the over 700 accredited Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres nationwide,” he said.
Adejobi explained that the force was familiar with the tactics employed by fraudsters, especially during the annual assessment and admission exercises.
He, therefore, said that both organisations was actively sensitising candidates and the public about these deceptive practices.
“Any candidate who visits these fake sites will definitely have unreliable information and thereby miss out in the forthcoming exams.
“Candidates are advised to print their UTME Notification Slips before Friday, 19th April, 2024, to access vital information about their examinations.
“Any website other than www.jamb.gov.ng offering UTME slip printing services is fake and designed to defraud candidates,” he said.
He also called on candidates to beware of web sites offering ‘live’ questions and answers, as they were false and deceptive, saying that accessing such materials was prohibited.
He further said the board was partnering with the Nigeria Police Force National Cyber Crime Centre (NPF-NCCC) to address online scam-related issues seamlessly.
He assured candidates and the public of the force firm dedication to ensuring a fair and transparent examination process.
He also stressed that the Inspector General of Police had ordered the NPF-NCCC to go after scammers and fraudsters who engage in cyber related crimes and create phishing sites/portals.
On his part, the JAMB spokesperson, Dr Fabian Benjamin, pledged the Board’s commitment to continue in playing its role
He, therefore, urged candidates to ignore any unsolicited messages noting that they were from elements who aim at defrauding candidates.
The 2024 UTME is scheduled to commence on Friday, April 19, and end on April 29. (NAN)
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