Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State on Thursday disclosed the intention of his administration to employ over 5,000 primary school teachers before the end of 2019.
Ortom made the disclosure while inaugurating Chairman and members of the newly reconstituted State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) at the Government House in Makurdi.
He also said over 2,000 teachers are due for retirement by October, 2019.
The governor said that the opportunity would make room for unemployed graduates to teach in primary schools across the state, stressing that the high rate of unemployment especially amongst the youths will be reduced.
He frowned at the recent discovery of dead and ghost teachers on the payroll of government and urged the new board to do more in getting rid of bad eggs in the system.
Ortom urged the newly instituted board to guard against unscrupulous acts, especially as the state would soon access another N10 billion counterpart funds from the Universal Basic Education Commission for project execution.
“You have a mandate to restore the lost glory of primary education in the State. Our intention has always been to make primary education strongest. And so, the task of eliminating ghost teachers should be your priority.
“Your must work as a team and do not hesitate to raise alarm if the Chairman is derailing. We do not want what happen in the past to repeat in our second term. I urge you to imbibe transparency and accountability in the discharge of your responsibilities,” the governor said.
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