Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has criticised President Bola Tinubu over what he described as the worsening hardship faced by teachers and Nigerian families.
Atiku, in a statement issued on Monday by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, said leaders who could not remember their teachers or classmates could hardly understand the challenges confronting teachers.
He said he still remembered the names and faces of his early teachers in Jada, whom he credited with helping to shape his future after he lost his parents at a young age.
According to him, teachers are struggling with rising costs of food, transportation, rent and electricity, while their incomes have failed to keep pace with the rising cost of living.
“It is both revealing and deeply embarrassing that Bola Tinubu cannot name a single teacher who stood before him or a classmate who sat beside him,” Atiku said.
He described teachers as “architects of every nation’s future,” stressing that their welfare must go beyond ceremonial praise on Teachers’ Day.
Atiku said the government could not continue to celebrate teachers while leaving them to face economic hardship throughout the year.
“Government cannot praise teachers on this day and leave them to face hardship for the rest of the year. A commemorative message cannot pay a teacher’s bills,” he said.
The former vice president also apologised to Nigerian teachers and citizens on behalf of what he described as a leadership that had failed to make their welfare a priority.
He pledged that, if elected, his administration would pursue policies aimed at reducing the cost of living, creating decent jobs and improving the welfare of teachers and families.
Atiku, who is also the founder of the American University of Nigeria, said his experience in education had given him an understanding of the dedication and sacrifices required in teaching.
He thanked teachers across the country for their service and urged the government to match its appreciation with concrete policies that would provide them with decent and dignified living conditions.
You won’t understand teachers’ struggles if you can’t name yours, classmates — Atiku to Tinubu