Adamawa inaugurates Teachers Service Commission, pledges reforms

The Adamawa Government has inaugurated the State Teachers Service Commission, a new body set up to strengthen teacher management, improve school administration and raise the quality of secondary education in the state.

 

The Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Umar Pella, announced the move on Wednesday in Yola at the commission's inauguration.

 

Pella said the commission was part of the government's ongoing reforms to reposition the teaching profession and improve service delivery in the education sector.

 

According to him, the commission takes over the functions of the defunct Post-Primary Schools Management Board. These include teacher recruitment, employment, promotion and welfare, as well as school management.

 

He said the change followed about three years of planning aimed at building a more efficient structure that could tackle longstanding problems in the management of secondary education.

 

The commission, Pella added, will also be responsible for effective school administration, including managing non-teaching staff and the other resources schools need to run smoothly.

 

The commissioner urged the newly inaugurated chairman and members to stay committed to their duties. He noted that overseeing more than 500 secondary schools in the state would demand dedication, integrity and effective collaboration.

 

He warned the members against inducement, manipulation and any other practices that could undermine the government's education policies.

 

Pella said the government remained committed to free education and expected the commission to promote accountability, discipline and effective management of public schools.

 

He assured the commission of the ministry's support and stressed that education authorities, teachers and other stakeholders must cooperate for the reforms to succeed.

 

Responding, the chairman of the commission, Dr Saleh Bukar, thanked the state government for the confidence it had placed in the members.

 

Bukar said the commission would work to ensure that the government's investment in basic and secondary education translated into better learning outcomes.

 

He said its priority would be to produce students with sound knowledge, good character and improved performance in internal and external examinations, particularly those conducted by the National Examinations Council (NECO) and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

 

The chairman pledged to work with the Ministry of Education, teachers' unions, parents, development partners and other stakeholders to achieve the commission's objectives.

 

He said he was confident that, with the support of the ministry and other stakeholders, the commission would effectively discharge its mandate.

The permanent members of the commission are Mrs Irene Haladu, Rev. Daniel Bulus and Alhaji Adamu Bello. The part-time members are Alhaji Isa Mohammed, Mr Usman Ayuba and Mrs Bless Calvin.