Abia State Teachers Protest Unpaid Salaries, Accuse Governor Otti of Neglect

Public primary school teachers in Abia State are facing dire economic challenges, as they protest against the alleged negligence of the Governor Alex Otti-led government in addressing their financial woes. The educators claim to have endured three months of unpaid salaries, leading them to the brink of poverty.

Speaking out, some teachers expressed their anguish, stating that the prolonged non-payment of salaries had forced them into a state of hardship. They lamented resorting to begging to provide for their families and decried the adverse impact on their well-being.

Despite fulfilling all necessary conditions, including staff verification, the teachers assert that their entitlements have been unjustly withheld. Comparisons were drawn to the efficient handling of similar issues in neighboring states, emphasizing the apparent delays and discrepancies in Abia.

One teacher revealed, “We Abia state primary school teachers and staff have continued to be excluded from payment despite being verified. Something that took Charles Soludo in Anambra a month to sort, his Abia counterpart, Alex Otti has spent almost 6 months but yet salaries continue to be denied, short paid, and the next thing they tell us is to print our bank statements and bring to the Umahia.”

Expressing their heartbreak, another teacher disclosed the grim reality faced by many colleagues, highlighting their descent into poverty. “In Aba North and Aba South, most primary school teachers, most of us are being owed three months’ salaries. Workers in other sectors had been paid November salaries, yet we were not paid again. Brother, I am a victim. How will I spend December without salary? Many in Abia state are crying, dying. After being verified with sufferings, there is yet no salary for three months. That is July, April, and now November.”

The teachers appealed for intervention, asserting that the current situation, if unaddressed, would cast a shadow over the upcoming Christmas festivities for the affected families.