By Nchetachi Chukwuajah
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has met with leaders of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) in Abuja over the ongoing strike by primary school teachers.
A video shared by Lere Olayinka, media aide to the FCT minister, showed Wike in a meeting with NUT leaders in Abuja on Thursday, April 23.
Speaking after the meeting with Wike, chairman of the NUT in the FCT, Abdullahi Shafa, said the union had a “fruitful” discussion with the minister.
Shafa, however, declined to comment on the union’s next course of action regarding the ongoing strike.
He noted that the union would announce its next course of action after its leadership meets to review the outcome of the meeting.
Shafa said Wike presented programmes aimed at supporting teachers across all levels of education in the territory, including primary, junior secondary, and senior secondary schools.
The NUT chairman noted that the meeting addressed key issues raised by the union, adding that the discussions also covered the welfare of teachers, with some progress recorded.
He said, “We had a very fruitful discussion with the honourable minister on the issues we have tabled before him. And we want to appreciate him for the giant stride in FCT.
“We, the teachers, too, both at the primary school level, junior secondary school level, and senior secondary school level, appreciate the minister. He is into renovating and restructuring some of our schools.
However, he said there are persisting concerns, particularly regarding primary school teachers, whose rights and entitlements remain unresolved.
“The rights of our members are being discussed and being settled. The only area where we have greater problems is the area of the primary school teachers, where their rights and entitlements have shortcoming. But with our meeting of today, we are going to make headway, and our counterparts at the primary school level will equally feel the impact of the government,” he said.
Shafa expressed optimism that the engagement with the minister would lead to improvements, especially for teachers at the primary school level.
“We have met with him and will return to deliberate on the discussions and decide on the next course of action. Once that is done, we will communicate our position,” he said.
Recall that teachers in the FCT began an indefinite strike on Monday, April 20, following a directive by the union’s state wing executive council over what they termed “unmet” demands.
The directive to embark on the strike was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the union’s emergency meeting on Friday.
In the communiqué, jointly signed by Abdullahi Shafa, state chairman; Margaret Jethro, secretary; and Ibukun Adekeye, publicity secretary, the NUT expressed concern over the delay in implementing a report outlining their demands.
The report was submitted in 2025 after the teachers suspended a three-month strike over outstanding entitlements.
The union also called for the removal of the “vacancies” precondition for teachers’ promotion, as well as a comprehensive review of the 2024 promotion exercise conducted by the FCT Civil Service Commission to ensure the unhindered advancement of eligible teachers.
In compliance with the union’s directive for teachers in the FCT to embark on an indefinite strike, several schools across the FCT were shut on Monday, with no pupils, students, or teachers on the premises.
The Mandate Secretary of the FCT Education Secretariat, Danlami Hayyo, urged the NUT to suspend the strike, warning that it could lead to mass failure among students scheduled to sit for the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) examinations starting Tuesday.
