The Jigawa State Government has conditionally reinstated 245 primary and junior secondary school teachers whose salaries were suspended in June 2025 due to prolonged absenteeism and other severe professional misconduct.
The reinstated absentee teachers, according to the Jigawa government, were brought back into service after they formally apologised for their actions and signed undertakings pledging renewed commitment to their duties. The decision to reinstate the absentee teachers followed a crucial meeting convened by the Jigawa State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) on Monday at the NUT Conference Hall in Dutse, the state capital.
Investigations by SUBEB had revealed that the affected teachers had abandoned their posts for periods ranging from two months to an astonishing three years, yet continued to receive their full salaries. In some egregious cases, records showed that teachers even hired unqualified individuals to teach in their stead, a blatant violation of civil service rules.
Professor Haruna Musa, the Executive Chairman of SUBEB, expressed the government’s profound concern over such conduct. Speaking to journalists after the meeting, he emphasised that these actions directly sabotage governmental efforts to improve the quality of education and address the issue of out-of-school children. “The era of teachers neglecting their duties is over, as there is now a system to restore the dignity of basic education,” Professor Musa declared.
He stressed that the Board would no longer tolerate negligence, especially given the state government’s consistent fulfilment of its obligations, including timely salary payments and granting promotions to teachers. Musa emphasised that the Board’s recent crackdown marks “a new phase of accountability in the education sector.”