The Plateau State Government has threatened to sack 155 teachers holding dual appointments with local and state governments.
Chairman, Plateau State Teachers Service Commission, Vonjen Lar told newsmen that the state government had in February recruited a total of 834 teachers for its Secondary Schools.
He said the state recently found out that of the number recruited, 155 of them were already engaged by the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) as teachers in the primary schools.
The chairman explained that the government discovered that 155 teachers had, by their attitude, violated the civil service rule number 030402 (q), which frowns at anybody holding two government appointments at the same time.
“What these teachers have done is nothing but gross misconduct, punishable by outright dismissal.
“It is a common law that you can’t be working in two places with the same civil service of a state. You have to resign in one and take the other and not the two at once.
“When we advertised for the employment, we were categorical that anyone who has a job with either the Local or state government needs not apply because it is against the civil service rule.
“But surprisingly, we discovered 90 permanent teachers and 65 ad-hoc teachers with SUBEB that did apply and were offered another appointment to teach in our secondary schools,’’ he explained.
He said the defaulters were discovered when a soft copy of the list of the 834 newly employed teachers were sent to SUBEB for scrutiny.
Lar said most of them expect the commission to allow them transfer their services from the local government to the state government, saying that was not possible because of the embargo placed on such transfers by the government.
“If they will be allowed to switch, it would not be on transfer basis but coming as a fresh recruit and not on transfer of service.
“We have asked the affected teachers to come forward and pick forms to fill in agreement with our terms or remain where they are in the primary section,‘’ he declared.
The TSC chairman expressed government’s worry over the attitude of the teachers, pointing out that as the schools resume next week, there would be shortage of teachers in the primary schools.
He noted, “Can you imagine the crisis we are going to face in the primary schools next when the pupils would enter their classes and they will not see their teachers coming to teach them?
“This is a gross dishonesty; teachers are supposed to be people of high integrity, but for them to have started like this, is very unfortunate and worrisome.”
Lar called on teachers who fall into such category to report to the commission, warning that if they failed, they would face the consequence.
