By our correspondant
About 4,000 public secondary school teachers employed by the Akwa Ibom State Secondary Education Board (SSEB) during the 2017/2018 recruitment exercise have protested the non-payment of promotion arrears spanning four years and ten months.
Operating under the aegis of the Concerned Akwa Ibom Teachers Forum (CAITF), the teachers conveyed their grievances in a letter of appeal addressed to Governor Umo Eno through the State Commissioner for Education, Prof. Ubong Essien. They lamented that the government’s failure to address their welfare challenges has left many of them in poverty and heavy debt.
The petitioners, who spoke anonymously due to restrictions under the Public Service Rules (PSR), warned that continued neglect could compromise the ethical standards of their profession as trainers of future leaders.
According to the letter, the teachers were due for promotion from Salary Grade Level 8 to Level 9 in January 2021, but promotion letters were only released in December 2023, with no arrears paid. Similarly, they became due for promotion from Grade Level 9 to 10 in January 2024, but letters were again delayed until December 2025, with arrears unpaid.
They argued that these actions contradict established Public Service practice and violate their rights under the Public Service Rules, the Labour Act, which guarantees fair remuneration, and the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), Section 17(3)(a), which mandates just and humane conditions of work. Promotion without arrears, they said, amounts to denial of earned entitlements and has caused serious financial hardship amid rising living costs.
The teachers appealed to Governor Eno to intervene by approving the payment of all outstanding promotion arrears from January 2021 to November 2023 for the GL 8–9 promotion, as well as arrears from January 2024 to November 2025 for the GL 9–10 promotion. They also urged the government to ensure timely promotion of teachers henceforth.
“We trust in Your Excellency’s well-known commitment to justice, fairness, and workers’ welfare and believe your intervention will restore our morale and strengthen our dedication to service,” the petition concluded.
