The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has threatened to utilise 10% of internally generated revenue designated for area councils to pay striking primary school teachers in the FCT.
The minister made this statement on Thursday after reviewing the ongoing Apo-Karshi Road project.
Wike said he would not allow children to be affected by the strike, which has been ongoing for more than a week, and that no real government would tolerate it.
Recall that the teachers resumed their strike on Wednesday, September 18, 2024, following a 14-day ultimatum issued to Area Council Chairmen by the FCT Wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers.
The teachers are requesting, among other things, the establishment of a 40% peculiar allowance and the payment of 25 months’ minimum wage arrears.
The minister further stated that he has invited the Chairmen of the Area Councils and the FCT NUT leadership to discuss the matter.
“I’ve invited the Area Council Chairmen and the NUT to let us sit down. These are the things we talk about. We try to do what we can to see that the system is moving well. It is unfortunate, as I told the Area Council Chairmen, that the teachers are on strike.”
“And that will mean that if the teachers are not paid, then I will use the 10% IGR, which nobody has paid to them, to pay the teachers. I will not fold my arms and allow that to happen. No serious government will allow their teachers to stay at home while the children are suffering; I will not tolerate that,” he said.
Speaking on the Apo-Karshi project, Wike stated that the contractor, Messrs Khakatar Limited, had offered assurances of completing the project by April 2025 and that he had chosen to give the contractor the benefit of the doubt.
“I still have my doubts, but they are insisting that by April, they will have completed this project. It’s a project very dear to us; we know the importance of this road. So many people are eager to see that this project is completed on time so that it will ease a lot of traffic and also boost the economic activities of this area. Let us give them the benefit of the doubt,” Wike stated.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")