Teachers can’t teach effectively on empty stomach — ADC Campaign slams APC

By Luminous Jannamike

ABUJA – The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council (ADC-PCC) has said Nigerian teachers cannot effectively discharge their duties amid worsening economic hardship, poor welfare and deteriorating working conditions.

The council said those educating the country’s children were themselves struggling with rising living costs, poor salaries and inadequate welfare, despite their critical role in shaping Nigeria’s future.

In a statement to mark the 2026 World Teachers’ Day, signed by its Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, the council described teachers as the backbone of national development and custodians of the country’s future.

“Nigerian teachers are true heroes. They have continued to mould lives, build character and sustain our educational system even in the face of neglect and hardship,” Ologbondiyan said.

He blamed the worsening situation on the removal of petroleum subsidy without adequate cushioning measures, poor and irregular salaries, inadequate welfare, insufficient training, dilapidated school infrastructure and the rising cost of living.

“How can a teacher teach effectively on an empty stomach? How can a teacher give his best when he cannot afford transportation to school because of high fuel prices, when his salary cannot meet his monthly needs, when he has no adequate medical insurance and cannot afford decent accommodation?” he queried.

Ologbondiyan also alleged that the teaching profession had been devalued under the All Progressives Congress-led administration, citing poor remuneration in primary and secondary schools and repeated strikes by tertiary education workers over welfare and working conditions.

Despite the challenges, he said teachers had remained committed to their duties and deserved a fundamental improvement in their welfare and professional conditions.

He assured that an ADC administration led by its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, would make teachers’ welfare and education a priority, through living wages, improved allowances, health insurance, affordable housing, professional development and better teaching and learning facilities.

“The ADC will place education and teachers’ welfare at the centre of its national development agenda because no nation can rise above the quality of its teachers,” he said.

He urged teachers to remain hopeful, promising that the party would restore dignity, professionalism and pride to the profession if elected in 2027.

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