Governor expresses concern over dearth of quality teachers

Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State on Thursday expressed worry over the dearth of quality teachers in the state, particularly in basic education.

El-Rufai told the National Assembly House Committee on Basic Education in Kaduna that some teachers scored zero in a recent proficiency test conducted for primary school teachers in the state.

Represented by his Deputy, Barnabas Bantex, the governor blamed the ugly trend on the politicisation of teachers employment in the state.

“We set the examination based on primary four curriculum and pegged 75 per cent as pass mark, but the highest was 45 per cent with a reasonable number with zero.

“One should not be surprised because, over time, the state has politicised employment into the teaching profession, and by so doing mortgaged the future of our children, “he said.

He, however, said that the state government had already taken measures to correct the anomalies and rid the school of unqualified teachers.

“This is because ensuring adequate quality teachers at the basic level is the foundation upon which our educational development will be built, “he said.

The governor added that in addressing the massive infrastructural deficit in primary schools, the government would soon embark on storey building structures in schools across the state.

“A company has already been engaged, we are only waiting for certain funds to commence construction, “he said.

He, however, appealed to the committee to assist the state in mobilising educational grant to enable it provide the much needed basic infrastructure in schools.

Earlier, the leader of the committee, Mr Istifanus Gyang, representing Barikin Ladi/Royom Federal Constituency, Plateau State, explained that the committee was in the state for an oversight function.

He explained that the committee was in the state to assess the access and utilisation of Universal Basic Education Commission intervention funds as appropriated by the National Assembly.

He noted that the committee’s interaction with state basic education board revealed that the state needed N93 billion to address the infrastructural deficit in primary schools.

“We equally learnt that the state has only 33,000 classrooms in its primary schools and need additional 24,000; has 37,004 teachers and need about 25,000 more.

He expressed worry over the poor global rating of educational development in the country, particularly northern part of the country.

According to him, government at all levels has the responsibility of ensuring that people are properly educated for sustainable development.

“I therefore urged you to utilised the UBEC capital grant for 2015 and 2016 intervention already accessed to improve the learning environment of pupils.

“I understood that the implementation of the fund was put on hold to enable your government align the UBEC interventions with your vision. I believed that that has been sorted out, “he said.

He nonetheless commended the state for being up to date in accessing UBEC funds.

He also described the state as a near model in terms of community engagement and participation in developing and maintaining school infrastructure.