NUT to FG: Address anomalies in teaching profession

The Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) on Monday in Abuja urged the Federal Government to address various anomalies in the teaching profession.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Secretary General of NUT, Mr. Obong Ikpe, made the call when a delegation from the Tanzania Ministry of Education and Vocational Training visited the NUT secretariat.
He said that a proposal was put to government by NUT demanding the establishment of a teacher regulatory agency, which was approved by the government after a prolonged strike by the union in 1993.
He said it took government 10 years before the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) finally took off in 2003.
According to him, there is a need for government to make sure National Certificate in Education (NCE) remains the minimum qualification in the teaching profession.
“I am always worried when I hear about quacks in the teaching profession as the national policy on education is very clear.
“People had always felt that if you are looking for a job and when it is not forthcoming, you will go and mark time with teaching; this was the case prior to the establishment of TRCN.
“The minimum teaching profession is NCE, so if people still go ahead to recruit school certificate in the name of teaching whom are we to blame?’’
He added it was the duty of the government and employers of teachers to adhere strictly to the policy on education.
He said that policy on education stated that every teacher must have an NCE in the teaching profession.