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Newly recruited teachers in Gboko Local Government Area have voiced serious concerns over alleged illegal financial collections imposed by education officials at various stages of their recruitment and posting process. The issue has sparked outrage among the affected teachers, who claim they were pressured to sign statements denying the allegations.
According to reports, the teachers were summoned to a meeting on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, at the Area Education Office in Gboko. During the meeting, the Education Secretary addressed the group, expressing displeasure over claims that she had collected money from the new teachers. She instructed them to write and sign a statement declaring her innocence before returning to their Places of Primary Assignment (PPAs). However, the teachers collectively refused, insisting that money had indeed been collected from them at different points in the process.
The teachers allege that the first collection was for the stamping of appointment letters, the second for the collection of posting letters, and as recently as Wednesday, N1,000 was taken from some of them for the issuance of file numbers. One teacher, who signed the report under the name Hrh OrSankera Afaaka, appealed to the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) headquarters to urgently intervene, highlighting that the continuous illegal collections are inflicting serious hardship on the new educators.
Present at the meeting were the Gboko Local Government Chairman, the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) Chairman, and the State NUT Chairman. Despite their presence, the teachers stood firm in their refusal to sign the statement.
As of press time, neither SUBEB nor the Gboko Education Authority has issued an official response to the allegations. The situation remains unresolved, leaving the newly recruited teachers in a state of uncertainty as they await further action from the relevant authorities.
