Teachers in primary and secondary schools in Ekiti have declared support for the 2026 governorship re-election of Governor Biodun Oyebanji.
The teachers gave the endorsement at an event to mark the 2024 World Teachers’ Day on Saturday in Ado-Ekiti, saying this will afford him the unfettered opportunity to consolidate the policies initiated to revamp the education sector.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the theme of the 2024 World Teachers’ Day’ is ‘Valuing Teachers’ Voices: Towards a New Social Contract for Education.
In his address, the Chairman, Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Ekiti State, Mr Daodu Bamidele, said that the teachers were appreciative of the governor’s positive, impactful educational policies.
Bamidele said that teachers in the state were solidly supporting Oyebanji’s re-election in 2026.
He commended Oyebanji for his positive contributions to strengthening the sector, urging the government to initiate policies that would halt brain-drain in education, to retain the best brains within the system.
Daodu sought immediate implementation of 65 years retirement age for teachers as obtainable in some states of the federation, to give his colleagues job security and relevance in the scheme of things.
He said that going by the breakdown of the financial incentives, Mrs Modupe Folayemi of Saint Francis’ Primary School, Igbara Odo and Mr Odunayo Oriloye of Notre Dame Grammar School, Usi-Ekiti, received N6 million each, as the best teachers at both primary and secondary schools respectively.
In his address, Governor Biodun Oyebanji, represented by the deputy governor, Mrs Monisade Afuye, said his government has ensured expeditious and timely payment of salaries and deductions.
He also said that approval had been given for multimillion naira worth of housing and vehicle loans to motivate the teachers and shore up their outputs.
Oyebanji, who described the teachers as the fortress of the education sector, promised to provide all the necessary incentives that could propel Ekiti’s rating on the country’s education index.
He celebrated the teachers for their performance and to uplift the educational standard announced a staggering sum of ₦47.8 million cash gift to different categories of outstanding teachers.
“I want to sternly warn all school managers at all levels that the government has zero tolerance for examination malpractice and investigations are ongoing to look into some of the allegations of conniving in the promotion of examination malpractice in some schools, which led to the seizure of SSCE certificate examination results.
“Through the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment, a World Bank assured project, many of our public schools have been refurbished and perimeter fences have been constructed in line with our safe school initiative.
“We have also fulfilled our promise to address the issue of career progression for graduate teachers in primary schools by approving their advancement from grade level 15 to 16, so as to bring them to a parallel peak with their counterparts in the civil service, Full Details” Oyebanji said.
