Luck smiled on 15 teachers of Community Primary School, Amazu in Ishielu local government area of Ebonyi State as Governor David Umahi who paid an unscheduled visit to the school doled out cash to the teachers to change their wardrobe.
Governor Umahi who engaged the teachers in academic exercise including questions in English language and mathematics expressed dissatisfaction with the way the teachers dressed to work and immediately announced cash donation of N300, 000 for the 15 teachers present during the visit.
However, the headmaster of the school, Mr. Augustine Eze and seven other teachers were not lucky as they were suspended by the angry Governor Umahi over their absence in the school during school hour.
Governor Umahi further directed the suspended teachers to report to the Chairman of Ishielu local government area, Mr. Henry Eze who will then take them to the Chairman of the Universal Basic Education, UBEB for more disciplinary actions.
He expressed dismay over the nonchalant and negligent attitudes of some civil servants and warned that the state government will no longer tolerate workers who do not put interest in their jobs.
“It is very unfortunate the way and manner some of our civil servants do their jobs without passion. We have defined the contours and perimeters of our call for change in our attitude and perception of what we refer to as government property, it is absurd that pupils will be in the school and the school headmaster and teachers will brazenly absent themselves from their duty posts. We shall not take this anymore, and the headmaster and the absentee teachers are hereby suspended and are directed to report to the Chairman of the local government area who then will take them to the UBEB and they must be transferred after serving their suspension”, Umahi said.
He urged the teachers present during his visit to double their efforts and use the money he gave them to change their wardrobe and look neat and smart before their pupils. The elated teachers and the pupils chanted solidarity song as the convoy of the governor left the school.
The impunity of our folks is nauseating from top to bottom. From the absentee teachers to the power-drunk governor! While the governor has every right to be miffed about the absentee head teacher and his co-truants, I think it falls outside of his purview to engage them in a mental test of their fitness as teaching professionals that they are. Umahi is neither a teacher nor a member of the teachers’ qualification administration board, and as such lacks the necessary qualification to assess any teacher’s professional fitness. That’s misuse of power to intimidate, humiliate and shame the poor teachers. Secondly, doling out unbudgeted state cash, as if it were from his personal savings, for teachers to spruce up their wardrobe, is an act of impunity and abuse of power. If these poor teachers are paid their salaries, chances are that they could be in a better position to attend to their unseemly wardrobes. Thirdly, does this school not have a superintendent or supervisor whose head should have first rolled for dereliction of his own duties? Fourthly, is the governor not usurping the powers of the LGA boss under whose jurisdiction this school and its erring teachers are subjected? Why is the governor acting as if this elected LGA boss is his employee that he can command? We tend not to know our boundaries and stay in our lanes. Being a governor doesn’t make you a no respecter of chain of command. That’s why there are commissioners and other levels of administrators and managers who should be left to do their paid duties or be canned for incompetence. But this governor overstepped some bounds here, if truth be told!