The Nigerian Union of Teachers has joined the world in the campaign calling for the immediate release of the abducted girls of government girl’s secondary school Chibok, Borno state.
The union, in a protest in Abuja made the call on the abductors and their collaborators to release the girls.
The NUT FCT wing Chairman, Comrade Hassan Jibril, said the rally was in solidarity to the families of the abducted girls in Chibok.
“All teachers in Nigeria today in solidarity to the families of the abducted Chibok girls are demonstrating and protesting their feelings through this rally to show our concern as people who are directly affected and who have been under direct attacks of Boko Haram in Nigeria.
“The Nigerian teachers are demanding from the Federal government that they should ensure safe release of the abducted girls, we don’t want a situation whereby the rescue operations may be exchanging gunfire and probably get anyone killed, we say NO to this, we want them back into the classroom safe and alive so that we can continue to teach them their curriculum and they perfectly seat for the conclusion of their examinations” Jibril emphasized
He said the teacher’s demonstration was in line with the global outcry to ensure that the girls are safe and alive.
Jibril who added that the Union had lost over one hundred and seventy three teachers from Yobe and three from Borno state due to the insurgency called on the Federal government to ensure adequate compensation to the families of the deceased.
Also speaking at the protest, the Union Secretary, Labaran Garuba, said that the protest was to lend the voice of the teachers in the Federal Capital Territory to condemn the abduction of over two hundred girls in Chibok.
“As Nigeria teaches we are directly suffering from the attack of the insurgencies, our schools are not as safe as we want, Parents are teachers are afraid not knowing both their fate and that of the pupils/students under them”
The protesting teachers displayed placards of different messages majorly demanding for adequate security to be in place in Nigeria schools.
They also chanted solidarity songs of all kinds and specifically chanting that Nigeria Teachers are saying bring back our students to classroom.
Voice of Nigeria earlier reported that the national leadership of the Nigerian Union of Teachers directed all its members in the thirty six states of the federation including the FCT to put all primary schools under lock and key to protest against the abduction of the Chibok school girls and also to demand that the Federal government compensate the families of deceased teachers in the Boko Haram Insurgencies.
