Demoted teachers protest six-year unpaid salaries in Calabar

Cross River State primary school teachers, who were demoted in 2016 by the State Universal Basic Education Board, on Wednesday, took to the streets to protest over the alleged non-payment of their salaries for six years in Calabar.

Speaking on behalf of the teachers, Mrs Ekponwan Ekanem, said, “We are stagnated because of the demotion. Over 2,000 of us were affected across the state.

“We have not been paid since 2016 and many have died due to hardship. Some are receiving alerts far below their monthly salaries while some of us don’t even receive anything.

“We have not been promoted either and we are still teaching on empty stomach.”

The aggrieved teachers complained that dues to the neglect by SUBEB, most of their colleagues have passed away.

The Secretary of SUBEB, Mr Cyril Itam, reacting to the teachers’ demands, said the board was “waiting for the outcome of the audit report on the matter from the office of the Auditor General of the Local Government Service Commission.

“In November last year, we called all those who had remedied their problems to come and they went through screening to ascertain their current status.

“The report of the screening is with Auditor General of the Local Government Service Commission. So, the issues are being sorted out.

“Some were demoted down to Grade level 4 because they had no teaching qualification.”