WTD: NUT Slams C’River Govt With 10-Point Demand

The Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, Cross River State Wing, has slammed the Cross River State Government with a 10-point demand, insisting that urgent steps be taken to protect teachers and advance the status of the profession.

The demands were presented by the State Chairman, Comrade Olayi Gregory, during the 2026 World Teachers Day celebration held at the NLC State Secretariat Complex, Monday in Calabar.

The event is organised by labour leaders to mark the 60th anniversary of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO recommendations, which set aside 5 October to honour teachers globally.

Speaking on the theme, “Standing with Teachers: 60 Years of Protecting the Profession, Advancing its Status and Shaping Our Futures,” Olayi said, “the role of teachers cannot be separated from any society”, stressing that when teachers are protected and empowered, education becomes more inclusive and transformative.

He listed the union’s demands to include promotion of teachers to Salary Grade Level 17 as obtained in Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Rivers States, rehabilitation of decaying school facilities and dilapidated infrastructure, recruitment of more teachers to fill shortages across the three education boards, and payment of primary school salaries as and when due.

Other demands are the reversal of the stoppage of promotions implemented since June 2026 by the Auditor-General for Local Government, the restoration of the Teachers Special Allowance, the payment of salaries owed since September 2025, the payment of rural, science, technical, and hazard allowances, and the increase of the education budget from 12% to 25%.

The NUT also demanded an immediate end to the “policy of buying notes of lessons, chalks, diaries and biros from teachers’ personal salaries,” describing it as exploitative and demeaning to the noble profession.