Education ministry, unity schools shut over unpaid allowances •...We didn’t receive N1.8bn —Ministry

GOVERNMENT activities at the headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Education were paralyzed on Monday by the indefinite strike declared by the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria over unpaid allowances estimated at N1.8 billion.

The 104 Federal Government Colleges, otherwise called Unity Schools, have also been shut nationwide by the aggrieved staff union.

The strike has also led to the cancelation of the proposed meeting between the Federal Government and Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) aimed at resolving the controversy over the resumption date for primary and secondary schools in the aftermath of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in Nigeria.

When the Nigerian Tribune visited the Federal Ministry of Education headquarters on Monday, all offices were under lock and key in total compliance with the strike order.

The staff of the ministry were also seen either crowded or gathered in threes and fours outside the gate of the building hosting the Education Ministry and Police Service Commission to discuss issues bordering on the strike and performance of the ministers in charge of the ministry.

Some of the placards posted on the walls of the ministry read: “All staff of Federal Ministry of Education are suffering, enough is enough”; “No annual training of staff on Grade Levels 03 to Grade Levels 14-the neglect is too much”; All staff of FME and all Unity Schools are on strike-forward ever backward never”; “pay all promotion arrears from 2007 to 2013-the cheating is too much”; among other inscriptions.

Organising Secretary of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, Comrade Musa Abbas, told Nigerian Tribune that the strike was total and would not be called off until the grievances of the workers were exhaustively addressed.

Meanwhile, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Dr MacJohn Nwaobiala, has dismissed claims by Senior Staff Association of Nigeria that the ministry received the sum of N1.8 billion from the Federal Government to settle debt owed the staff, describing the claim as false.

Reacting to the strike action by some staff of the Ministry, the Permanent Secretary said it was sad senior civil servants who had all the opportunities to obtain accurate information were disrupting official transactions based on mere hearsay.

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