NUT to spend N40m on reception party in Benue

The Nigeria Union of Teachers in Benue State on Sunday said it would spend N40 million for the reception of its national president and state chairman.
The NUT Chairman in the state, Godwin Anya, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Makurdi.
Anya said the union generated the fund from the N2,000 levy it imposed on 20,000 teachers in September.
He said the NUT constitution empowered the union to levy and make such deductions, adding that the state executive endorsed the decision.
He said: “The constitution empowers the state exco to take decisions on behalf of the members.
“The money will be used to organise the reception for NUT national president and myself, having served the union for seven years as state chairman.
“What the union is doing is to appreciate the hard work of these people and the efforts they have put in place in making sure that the welfare of the teachers improve.”
Anya said his office had received a letter from a lawyer on behalf of some aggrieved teachers asking the NUT and the State Universal Education Board to stop the deductions.
He, however, said that the state government still owe teachers five months salaries, adding that the union was working hard to ensure payment.
A check by NAN revealed some of teachers opposed the deduction on the ground that they had suffered unpaid salaries in the state for too long.
The aggrieved teachers, who preferred the union renovating the teachers’ house in Makurdi instead of the appreciation party, decried impunity by the exco members to deduct their salaries.
According to them, the amount of money deducted is too much for an ordinary reception.
One of them said: “The unwanted deduction has caused more financial hardship to us as we are still struggling to recover from the eight months strike in the state.
“The decision by the officials is an infringement on our rights.
“We are demanding to know the details for the reception.
“We need to know what the union officials were doing with the monthly dues deducted from our salaries.”
The Permanent Secretary of the board, Judith Hirnyam, confirmed the deduction.
Hirnyam told NAN that the board receives a letter from NUT for the salary deduction and complied with.
She said the board only deals with NUT officials and not individual teachers.