The Human Resources Director at the ministry, David Gende, said the implementation of the new retirement age began in January, 2021, 16 months before the law was gazetted.
Some members of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) at the Federal Ministry of Education (FME) have accused the ministry of promoting about 42 teachers who ought to have retired from civil service based on their birth dates.
They said the identified teachers are some of those who were recently promoted as directors and deputy directors, and appointed principals of some of the 104 Federal Government-owned colleges, otherwise known as unity schools.
The complainants, who don't crave want to be identified for fear of sanctions, said 42 of the more than 100 officials promoted were not supposed to benefit from the newly legislated increased retirement age for teachers.
But the government has insisted that its action is legal, and that though the law was only gazetted in 2022, its implementation kicked off earlier in 2021.
Allegation
Last week the Nigerian government inducted 112 directors and deputy directors with some of them appointed principals of the unity schools after successfully participating in promotion examinations.
The two-part examination began with a Computer Based Test on 16 August while those who passed proceeded to participate in an oral interview that held between 17 and 19 August.
However, some of the colleagues of the new appointees said many of them ought to have retired in 2021.
They claimed that the law relied upon by the government to grant them extension of service years only took effect in April when it was gazetted.
Official documents including memo seen by PREMIUM TIMES revealed that at least 42 persons who took part in the selection process, ought to have retired before 7 April when the new retirement age was signed into law.
At least five of them have been appointed principals in some of the unity schools.
Consequences
According to some of the teachers who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES but craved anonymity, the decision to backdate the implementation of the new 65-year retirement age for teachers by the government is fraudulent
These employees said many of the beneficiaries had earlier been sent off by their places of primary assignments but some others held on to their roles across various schools even after official disengagement from service.
"Since 2021, many of them have retired but refused to go. Though their salaries were not paid by the government but maybe because they received assurances from the government that they would be helped, they kept on pushing and refused to allow junior officers to move up the ladder of promotion," a source said.
The source added that for more than one year, the retired officers kept working without salaries, and that they refused to vacate offices and waited till after the enactment was gazetted so that they could have five years more in service.
"The truth is that many of them don't need the salaries because they are accounting officers across various schools and departments already, so they have access to 'free money', especially the one contributed by parents," the source added.
Appointment legitimate - Govt
Reacting to the development, the Director of Human Resources Department at the ministry, David Gende, told PREMIUM TIMES that the implementation of the additional five years of service for teachers/education officers began in January 2021, 16 months before the law was gazetted.
The director, who spoke to our reporter in his office on Monday, said it was normal for implementation to start after pronouncement while the legislation part is being worked out.
According to him, there are several examples of institutions established by the government which had commenced operations even before the law establishing them was passed.
Background
President Muhammadu Buhari had on Teachers Day in October 2020, announced sweeping reforms for teachers' welfare including a new salary scale and extended years of service.
By the announcement, Mr Buhari said unlike other civil servants, teachers and education officers could now retire "after clocking 65 years of age or 40 years in service --whichever comes first."
The Buhari-led Federal Executive Council (FEC) sent a bill for the harmonisation of teachers/education officers' retirement age to the National Assembly in January 2021.
While the House of Representatives passed the bill in November 2021, the Senate passed it in earlier in February. To make it a law, President Buhari appended his signature on 7 April, this year.
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However, before the bill was passed, the education ministry in January 2021, sent out circulars notifying retiring members of staff who are interested in leveraging on the additional five years to indicate interest as implementation was to begin that month.
Mr Gende said some of the affected staff opted for retirement as the five-year extension was not mandatory.
PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the education officers who were due for retirement in 2021 have continued to work and have not been paid their salaries for the period.
One of them who was to retire a year ago, told PREMIUM TIMES that they had continued to work because the ministry said they are to benefit from the extension.
"They asked us to wait. They said it will be taking effect from January 2021," the education officer said. "All those who retired before January 2021 have been allowed to leave the system."
Qosim Suleiman is a reporter at Premium Times in partnership with Report for the World, which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe
