Lawmakers at the Benue State House of Assembly have directed the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) to suspend the ongoing recruitment of teachers indefinitely.
This directive followed a motion raised during Thursday’s plenary session by Mr. Douglas Akya, representing Makurdi South under the All Progressives Congress (APC), and co-moved by Mr. Peter Ipusu of Katsina-Ala West.
Mr. Akya highlighted concerns regarding the recruitment process, noting discrepancies in the qualifications of shortlisted candidates. He pointed out that the advertised requirements included Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) and Bachelor’s in Education (B.Ed). However, graduates without education qualifications were also shortlisted, contrary to the initial criteria.
“This is in addition to the failure of the board to shortlist qualified candidates for the exercise. The manipulative picture portrayed by this development goes against the governor’s good intention to uplift the standard of education and revamp public primary schools,” Akya stated.
He praised Governor Hyacinth Alia for initiating the recruitment process to improve basic education in the state. However, he urged the assembly to summon the SUBEB chairman for an explanation, particularly regarding the inclusion of candidates with non-professional degrees and low aptitude test scores, some as low as 25 percent.
Supporting the motion, Mr. Alfred Berger (APC/Makurdi North) emphasized the need for accountability to meet the expectations of their constituents. Mr. Elias Audu (APC/Gwer East) advocated for the indefinite suspension of the exercise, a position also supported by Mr. Ipusu, who called for an investigative committee to examine the recruitment process.
During the session, Mr. Jonathan Agbidye (APC/Katsina-Ala East) reminded the assembly that the Local Government Education Authority (LGEA) traditionally oversees teacher recruitment, with SUBEB providing supervisory roles.
Speaker Hyacinth Dajo upheld the assembly’s decision, directing SUBEB to suspend the recruitment exercise and mandating its chairman to appear before the house on Tuesday for further clarification in an executive session.
Post A Comment: