ASHENEWS reports that Matrons and teachers who are employed as casual staff in some of the secondary schools across Niger state have lamented that the stipend of N5,000 being paid as monthly allowances to them is no longer sufficient to meet their needs in the current economic dispensation.
Some of the matrons and teachers who met with the reporter in Minna spoke of their struggles to make ends meet on the meagre allowance as they struggle to support their families.
The Matron and Teachers who spoke under the condition of anonymity to prevent victimization and sanction if they revealed themselves said that in a country where the cost of living continues to rise, the allowance they receive falls woefully short of providing even the most necessities for themselves and their families.
“With N5,000, we cannot fend for our family,” lamented one of the Matrons, “We are looking for help so that our allowance can be increased or we are normalized as real staff. We need an increase in the money we receive,” she continued, highlighting the dire need for financial assistance.
Another matron said, “We need help. It is sad that despite our unwavering commitment in our various schools across Niger, we still find ourselves struggling to support our families on a monthly allowance of only N5,000.”
Another Matron explained that the school does not feed them disclosing that to make ends meet, they try their hands at petty trading like groundnut, pure water and biscuits which are sold to the students after exhausting the provisions they brought from home.
Efforts to address these grievances have been met with frustration, according to the affected workers. Appeals to the PTA chairman and promises of action from school authorities have yielded no tangible results as regular engagement with the school management and the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) is met with the same refrain: “There is no money.”
A visit to the schools
When our Reporter visited the Maryam Babangida Girls Science College, one of the schools claimed to be paying this meagre allowance to the matrons and teachers who are casual workers, she met with the Principal, Rekiya Mohammed Bosso and Stephen Tajero who refused to comment on the issue as they claimed that they have been cautioned not to speak to Journalists. In the presence of the Reporter, the Principal made a call to a Director at the Ministry of Education who directed them not to say anything about the issue.
When our Reporter visited the Government Girls Secondary School, along old Airport Road, she met the absence of the Principal and Vice Principal as the Secretary said they were out for a meeting at the Ministry of Education.
A Source in the Maryam Babangida Girls Science College confirmed that the Matrons were paid N5,000 while the teachers who are casual workers are paid N7,000 monthly. The source said that this paltry sum is gotten from contributions from the Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) as there is simply no additional funding available.
According to the Source, the matrons and teachers were explained their roles and duties before they began work. “They knew they were casual workers and workers like that are not paid much money. For your information, the school management is trying their best for them. They have forwarded their names to the Ministry of Education time over time hoping they would be absolved. It will even help the schools if they are absorbed.
“What is happening in the state is that the employment for the lower cadre like labourers, cooks, matrons and others has not been done for some years and that is the effect we are now seeing. Another problem is that several of them do not have advanced education. So even with this current recruitment by the state government, they could not apply. We are hoping for the best for them from the state Ministry of Education”, the Source said.
The Reporter contacted the Information Officer of the state Ministry of Education, Jubrin Usman Kodo regarding the issue with the request to speak to the Commissioner or Permanent Secretary.
The Information Officer confirmed that there are indeed some matrons who are receiving N5,000 as allowance and it cuts across several secondary schools in Niger state. He said that it has been the practice for a long time while adding that recruitment is ongoing and the government is looking at ways by which the affected people can be absorbed into the government payroll.
Kodo promised to relay the Reporter’s request to meet the Commissioner or the Permanent Secretary as they were not on seat even after two subsequent calls to the Information Officer still insisted that neither the Commissioner nor the Permanent Secretary were available to react to this development.
