Prof. Mathew Sule, Chairman of the board disclosed this during a press briefing on Tuesday in Jos.

Sule said the development followed the intense screening exercise recently conducted by the board for teachers in the state.

He explained that the decision to sack the erring teachers was in consonance with the public service rules of the state and the guidelines of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN).

“In line with the directives by the TRCN that teachers without requisite qualifications should be disengaged, we conducted series of screening for our teachers.

“Of the over 15, 000 teachers in the 2,537 public primary schools in Plateau, we have discovered that 122 have presented fake certificates to us.

“We followed all due process, including visiting the schools they claimed they have graduated from and found out they did not actually attended those schools.

“As a board, that is poised toward quality teaching and learning at the basic educational level, we decided to dismiss them,” he said.

The chairman said some of the affected teachers had claimed ignorance of their alleged criminal acts, while some owned up.

According to Sule, Gov. Simon Lalong had in 2017 graciously granted pardon to over 2,000 teachers who had similar challenges, but were made to provide authentic certificates.

He explained that the educational system would not have the desired quality if unqualified teachers were allowed to remain in the system.

“We cannot get the desired quality in teaching and learning if we don’t have trained and quality teachers.

“The quality of a learner is a replicate of the quality of teacher

“So, I want to call on learning institutions to put all measures on ground to curtail such sharp practices,” he urged.

The chairman also advised teachers who don’t have the requisite and genuine qualifications to go and obtain it, adding that the board would not compromise on quality.

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The new policy raised the retirement age and service from 60 years to 65 years and from 35 years to 40 years respectively; established a special salary scale; provided rural allowance; increased science allowance; promised automatic admission and free tuition for children of teachers in their places of work; automatic recruitment for education graduates, etc.

”The development as a significant milestone in the history of education in Nigeria. Nigerian teachers have never had it so good. President Buhari has raised their level with the new teaching policy.

“The brain drain syndrome which Nigeria has been experiencing in the education sector is most likely to come to a halt or reduce drastically

“With the Buhari initiative, Nigeria is gradually moving close to global best practices in the welfare of teachers,” he said.

He, therefore, called on teachers around the country to prove their mettle through improved performance, dedication and high level professionalism.

“To whom much is given, much is expected. Our teachers must allow the federal government’s kind gesture to reflect in Buhari’s latest intervention will bring the desired improvement in the shortest time possible,” he said.

Our correspondent reports that President Buhari also approved the building of low-cost houses for teachers in rural areas and the sponsorship of teachers just as he assured of prompt payment of salaries and timely promotion to eliminate stagnation.

This is in addition to the Teachers Conversion Programme (TCP) and ICT training to mitigate the current dearth of qualified teachers in the school system, he said.

“Teachers have the power to shape and reshape the lives of young people and help learners to enhance their potentials. Only great teachers can produce excellent people and students that will make the future of our country great,” Buhari said.

He noted that “positive or negative influence of teachers on any child will have an effect on that child,” adding that “the future of this country will be a function of quality education delivered to our children today and this depends on the quality of our teachers and the quality of our teachers depend on the motivation”.

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The National President of the association, Mr Simeon Fowowe gave the advice in an interview with Our reporter in Lagos on Monday as the world marks the 2020 World Teachers’ Day (WTD).

It was reported that the theme for the 2020 edition of WTD is: “Teachers: Leading in Crisis, Reimagining the Future”.

The day is globally marked annually on Oct. 5 to recognise and celebrate the works of educators, including caregivers, teachers, researchers, chief lecturers and professors worldwide.

According to Fowowe, teachers need to start learning one skill or the other apart from those of the school system that could fetch them extra income, especially during crises or an outbreak of a pandemic.

“We commend the Federal Government of Nigeria for taking the lead in rescuing teachers from contracting the killing virus.

“They ensured that the coast became clearer before declaring opening of schools and some states; Lagos state especially put efforts in fighting COVID-19,” he said.

Fowowe added that the 2020 theme would address the role teachers played and are still playing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The issue of teacher leadership, in relation to crisis responses, it is not just timely but critical in terms of the contributions teachers have made to provide remote learning to the students.

“The discussions expected this year should revolve around the role of teachers in building resilience and shaping the future of education and the teaching profession in Nigeria,” he said.

Fowowe said : “Without any iota of exaggeration, one of the greatest challenges confronting the standards of education is the dearth of quality teachers.

“The dearth of willing, competent, effective teachers in our school system increases every day.

“No doubt, young men and women are not willing to choose teaching as a vocation, rather opting for lucrative courses such as medicine, pharmacy, computer science, engineering and so on.

“However, with the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals Four (SDGs4) on education, teachers are recognised as key to the achievement of education in the 2030 agenda.

“Today, we are going to celebrate, mark progress and reflect on ways to counter the remaining challenges for the promotion of the teaching profession in the country,” he told NAN.

The national president of ANPEIN regretted the many lives that were lost, ruined economies, the many children who became vulnerable and teachers who lost their jobs in 2020.

“Despite all of these, some of our members in the country were monitored during this pandemic and were singled out for their resilience and outstanding performance by ANPEIN Board of Trustees.

“`They will be celebrated and awarded for their hard work to mark the World Teachers’ Day,” he said.

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