A verification exercise for teachers in public and private schools in Akwa Ibom State will soon be conducted.
The State Coordinator of the Teachers Council of Nigeria, Mr. Aletor Omonzokpia stated that the council would authenticate the licence of registered teachers and identify those with fake licences.
He said although the registration of qualified teachers ended in 2019, 20,023 primary school teachers were registered in the state; 8,218 in secondary schools, and 6,017 teachers outside secondary and primary schools.
Mr. Omonzokpia lamented that teachers in private schools had not fully complied with the registration, adding that it was a challenge for the council.
“The number of registered teachers in primary schools is 20,023, while there are 8,218 in secondary schools. Teachers in other schools are 6,017. We have many teachers who have passed our exams but are yet to collect their licences because you are required to write promotional exams before you can get the certificate. The exam is now a criterion for registration, he said.
“Most of them have not turned up for the promotional exams. We will verify those teachers who have come to register. Thank God we have got the names of teachers in this state, both in the public and private sectors.
“The register will help us verify the registered ones. We will go to each local government and open verification centres. After the verification, the office will tell us another line of action. If they mobilise us, we will start that next month.
The State coordinator enumerated some of the challenges facing the council, “We are having challenges, especially from teachers in private schools, who don’t want to identify with us. We are trying to let them know that TRCN has come to stay as in other countries; we have a body that regulates the profession.”
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