About 100 primary and secondary school teachers employed by the Rivers State Government have staged a protest at the Government House in Port Harcourt over their alleged exclusion from the N100,000 Christmas bonus approved for civil servants by Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
The protesters claimed that other civil servants in the state had received theirs along with their December 2023 salaries, but wondered why they didn’t benefit from the bonus.
Prior to the Yuletide holidays, Fubara approved the bonus for each civil servant, a development which ignited wild jubilation from the workers and both the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in the state.
The aggrieved teachers, who besieged the Government House, expressed displeasure about the development and called on the state government to intervene.
Speaking to journalists on Friday, one of the teachers simply identified as Oke said, “We were so happy when we heard that the governor approved a N100,000 Christmas bonus for all civil servants. So we assumed that the last Christmas was going to be very great for us.
“But as we speak today, this is January, a few of us as you can see, have not received the Christmas bonus.
“On Monday, schools will be resuming. Most of us travelled and we have returned.
“We have exhausted all we have. So we are here this morning to register our complaints to our dear loving governor to help us talk to those who are holding our Christmas bonus.
“Our N100,000 Christmas bonus should be released because it will go a long way in cushioning the effect of the hardship, especially in this January.”
Others, who spoke to our correspondent, accused their banks and the State Universal Basic Education Board of failing to address the matter.
An official of the government, who addressed the protesting teachers, commended them for their peaceful disposition and assured them that their complaints would be looked into.
