El-Rufai vows to punish those who dared him, says strike won’t restore ‘bad’ teachers

Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna state, has vowed to take actions against teachers who obeyed the strike order of the National Union of Teachers (NUT).

The Kaduna chapter of the union had asked its members to stay off work from Monday in protest of the decision of the government to sack over 20,000 teachers who failed competency test.

El-Rufai had warned the teachers against complying with the directive, threatening to fire those who join the strike.

But some teachers defied his warning.

Reacting through Samuel Aruwan, his spokesman, the governor said their action would not restore their colleagues who were sacked.

He added that his administration was determined to protect the “children of the poor”.

The governor also warned the NUT against coercing teachers to partake in the strike, saying security operatives had been alerted about the development.

“Teachers who have absented themselves from work will face the severest penalties applicable in the public service rules,” read a statement Aruwan issued on el-Rufai’s behalf.

“Across the state, the illegality of the NUT’s strike action is being compounded by physical attempts to frustrate those teachers who wish to work. No law permits any worker to tamper with another’s right to work. The attention of the security agencies has been drawn to this dangerous pattern of conduct.

“The Kaduna state government is resolute in its determination to protect the future of the children of the poor. Ordinary citizens are entitled to expect public primary schools to deliver a decent standard of education.

“At least two million pupils are enrolled in public primary schools and their interests come first.

“Government is delighted to inform the public that marking of scripts of the 43,000 applicants for teaching positions is now concluded. The recruitment process to inject 25,000 qualified teachers into our public schools will now move to the next phase.

“KDSG will not allow the selfishness of a tiny minority to ruin the future of two million children.”