HURIWA urges Otti to pay 4,700 teachers

…Raises concerns over unpaid allowances, rural teachers’ welfare By Chioma Obinna The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has called on Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, to pay 4,700 newly recruited primary school teachers allegedly working without salaries. The association described the reported delay as unfair to the teachers, who it said were recruited and deployed to public schools, particularly in rural communities, but had yet to receive their first salaries since resuming duties last month.

In a statement on Tuesday, HURIWA’s National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, criticised reports that the teachers might not be paid until January 2027 because of a three-month probationary period. “Governor Otti must explain why 4,700 teachers employed by his government should work for months without salaries. These are not volunteering or charity workers.

They are employees who deserve to be paid for their services. Probation must not become a licence for exploitation,” the group said. HURIWA also alleged that the teachers’ training allowances had remained unpaid since September, questioning how they were expected to cover transportation costs and meet their family responsibilities without income. The association further asked the state government to explain why the newly recruited teachers were allegedly excluded from the N1 billion reportedly released for teachers during the 2026 World Teachers’ Day celebration.

It said the affected teachers claimed that existing teachers received N50,000 each from the fund, while the new recruits were left out. Beyond the alleged non-payment of salaries and allowances, HURIWA raised concerns about the welfare of teachers posted to rural communities, citing inadequate transportation and accommodation, as well as poor school infrastructure.

It urged the state government to deploy some of the electric buses reportedly procured by the administration to transport teachers to rural schools, provide affordable accommodation and teachers’ quarters, and rehabilitate dilapidated classrooms. “Governor Otti cannot claim to be transforming Abia’s education sector while the teachers recruited to drive that transformation allegedly beg for transportation money and wait for months to receive their salaries,” the association said.

HURIWA demanded the immediate payment of outstanding salaries and allowances, an investigation into the alleged exclusion of the new recruits from the Teachers’ Day payment, and improved welfare and working conditions. “These 4,700 teachers are not volunteers. They are not charity workers. They are employees recruited by the Abia State Government and deployed to serve the state.

Governor Otti must pay them, protect their dignity and provide the conditions they need to teach. Government cannot demand their labour and deny them their wages,” it said. The association urged the governor to intervene, warning that the recruitment exercise should not be undermined by allegations of unpaid labour and poor administrative handling.