Bayelsa State Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, has again warned public servants in the state to take their duties seriously or face sanctions, including dismissal.
He gave the warning while receiving a report from the Teachers Redistribution Committee headed by the Deputy Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr Irorodamie Komonibo, at his office in Government House, Yenagoa.
The committee, set up by the Deputy Governor was saddled with the responsibility of collecting, sorting and analysing available data with a view to equitably distributing teachers to all public primary schools across the eight local government areas of the state.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo, who described teaching as a serious business that requires commitment and dedication, noted that government would not hesitate to deal decisively with truant and unserious teachers.
He stressed that a situation where government employees refuse to go to work with impunity, but draw their monthly salaries without any hindrance was counter-productive and anti-development.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo further emphasized the need for workers in the state to embrace accountability and commitment to duty, adding that efforts of both leaders and followers that move a society forward.
His words: “Now that this report is out, I will meet with the various schools and community leaders, possibly ward by ward and hand over the list of teachers posted to them. They have to monitor the teachers.
“If any of them don’t come to work for 15 days without any justifiable reason, he or she will not have salary for that month. If you don’t come for 3 months, we sack you.
“We can’t continue this way believing that accountability is meant for the governor and deputy governor alone to observe and apply.
“We must know that society is not built by the efforts of the leaders alone. It is also built on the efforts of the followers.”
The Deputy Governor, who expressed gratitude to the committee for doing a thorough job, said the report had justified his belief that the Bayelsa public primary school system was mainly suffering from lopsidedness in teachers distribution and not necessarily dearth of teachers.
He assured that the present administration would implement all the relevant and necessary recommendations contained in the committee’s report that will enable the state government achieve its set goals in the education sector.
Presenting the Committee’s report, its Chairman and the Deputy Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr Irorodamie Komonibo, advised government to formulate and adopt a uniform nominal roll to be used by all public primary schools in the state.
According to the committee, it has already provided a standard and reliable format of nominal roll for schools to ease the processes for future teacher redistribution and verification exercises.
The Committee also stressed the need for government to closely monitor the incidences of frequent teacher attrition to address the problem of inequitable distribution of teachers which usually result in lopsidedness and supply gaps in schools.
According to the report, out of a total of 4,037 teachers available for redistribution found in the nominal rolls of schools as at May 2024; 2,405 were retained in their current schools, 966 were redistributed to schools within the LGAs they teach, while 666 were moved to other LGAs that need them.
“There is need to train officers working in education organs to be abreast with the intricacies of posting, redistribution and reassignment of teachers to ensure equity and fairness to enhance adequate and effective utilization of teachers in schools.
“Service records of all teachers should be updated to avoid errors. To achieve this, a comprehensive re-verification of all public primary school teachers is recommended for immediate action,” the committee added.
Also speaking, the Assistant Secretary of the Committee, Dr Stella Ugolo, appealed to government to ensure that appointment and posting of headteachers should be carried out only by the state Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) to correct existing anomalies.
Members of the committee included the Deputy Chief of Staff, Deputy Governor’s office, Comrade Gowon Toruyouyei, its Secretary, Dr Hamilton Ekeke, and Technical Adviser to the Governor on Treasury, Mr Timipre Seipulu.
Others included the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Mr Flint Ekpotuatein, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Dr Ebimowei Wodu, Executive Secretary, Education Development Trust Fund, Dr (Mrs) Alice Atuwo and a representative of NULGE, Comrade Etifa Clement.
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