The Borno State Governor, Babagana Umara Zulum has ordered a review of Primary School teachers’ verification exercise conducted in December 2020, which found 7,794 ghost teachers among 22,556 ghost workers across the 27 LGAs of the State.
In response to this, the Governor set up a review Committee which he inaugurated on Friday in Maiduguri, the State Capital.
Zulum had earlier set up a Primary School Teachers Verification Committee, chaired by Dr. Shettima Kullima, former Chairman of Borno State Universal Basic Education Board.
The Committee evaluated 26,450 teachers on the Government’s payroll of which 7,794 were identified as ghost workers.
The Nigerian Union Teachers (NUT) in Borno State however complained that of the 7,794 ghost workers, about 624 teachers were believed to have been wrongly included in the ghost workers’ list.
The Governor, during the inauguration, gave four terms of reference asking the Committee to thoroughly review the identities of 624 persons listed by the NUT.
The Committee is to review two reports submitted to the Governor on teachers’ verification and a Biometric Data Capture of Local Government Staff and Local Education Authorities.
Zulum also appointed the Secretary to the State Government, Usman Jidda Shuwa as Chairman of the Committee, State’s Commissioner for Local Government and Emirate Affairs, Sugun Mai Mele as Vice Chairman.
While members include representatives of the Nigeria Union Teachers (NUT), the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), and some top Government officials relevant to the Committee’s terms of reference.
The following are the Committee’s terms of reference:
1. Thoroughly review the physical verification of staff of Local Government Councils and Local Education Authorities, as conducted by the two separate Committees and determine those who have been laid off but have genuine cases and reasonable justification for their reinstatement.
2. Assess the overall administrative structures of the Local Government Councils and determine whether such structures are proportional to the staff disposition and organograms of the Councils.
3. Make recommendations on how possible best Government will implement Minimum Wage in Local Government Areas.
4. Any other matter the Committee deems relevant to the Terms of Reference as encapsulated above.