LASG Used, Dumped Us, Say Protesting Teachers

The 507 teachers recruited by the Lagos State Government to teach science students in the last West African Senior School Certificate Examination, WASSCE, have accused the state government for using and dumping them.

The government had three months ago announced that it had recruited 507 science graduates to prepare students for the WASSCE and that they would be given automatic job after that.

Governor Babatunde Fashola during his campaign openly told the public that the government had recruited 507 teachers on a permanent basis in order to give them hope and help the students in a bid to arrest mass failure in WASSCE.

The teachers stormed the state government Secretariat on Wednesday, saying that they had been used for cheap political gains and later dumped.

The state government which promised them permanent jobs has reneged on its promise as the teachers now roam the streets and the government Secretariat without any hope of being employed.

According to them, the government had dashed their hopes as it has refused to employ them on permanent basis, contrary to its earlier promise to do so.

One of the graduate teacher, Francis said, “The ministry of education has directed us to the Governor’s Office. Officials at the ministry said the issue of employment is beyond their powers and that we should visit the governor.”

He said that all the 507 recruited graduates were roaming the streets now despite the huge publicity by the state government before and after the electioneering that it had employed them.

A pregnant woman among them who craved anonymity said she resigned her nine-year old job to take up the appointment because she believed in the Fashola administration but that she was disappointed that she had been treated this way.

“Up till now, the government had failed to give me permanent employment. “I have resigned my nine-year paid job because I believe in Fashola’s administration but I’m disappointed that we have been used for political gains.”

“The goodies in the state service encouraged us to resign our appointments with reputable schools and companies to sit for the screening conducted by the state government for the tutorials with the hope that the government will absorb us back into the system thereafter,” one of the teachers stated.

They recalled their excitement when the government engaged their services to train the students in public schools in core subjects, such as Mathematics, English language, Biology Physics and Chemistry.

Permanent Secretary, Public Service Office, Mr. Lateef Dada, in response said that none of the graduate teachers had approached the office to complain about the appointment but that he would liaise with the Ministry of Education to know more about the issue.

“I don’t know that something like this is going on. Nobody has approached me on this. I will relate with the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Education to look into the case because I am not aware of anyone employed without a letter of employment,” he said.