Months after the Ekiti state elections have been concluded and confined to the history books, the teachers in the state have stated the reasons for voting out former Governor Kayode Fayemi during the June 21, 2014 governorship election.
The teachers acting under the auspices of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Ekiti chapter further said they don’t regret voting me out as they had every reason to do so for for allegedly introducing anti-teachers policies during his tenure.
The NUT was reacting to a programme on a radio station in Akure, Ondo State capital, where some teachers were said to have phoned Fayemi, who was appearing on a live programme and apologized on behalf of members.
According to the teachers, they have now spotted the difference between the former Governor and the incumbent, Mr. Ayodele Fayose.
But the NUT Chairman, Samuel Akosile, in a statement, described those who rendered the apologies as Fayemi’s apologists and not members of the union.
Akosile advised the former governor to refrain from dragging the body into politics, saying: “In as much as we do not want to be dragged into politics because we are civil servants and unionists, we feel constrained to ask Governor Fayemi and his apologists that who deserves apology, Fayemi or Ekiti teachers in this matter?
“Do we need to apologize for refusing to sit for an examination that was meant to retrench us? Do we need to apologize for going on strike for demanding our rights for the payment of 27.5 per cent? Do we need to apologize for standing up as a union to oppose policies that are inimical to educational development and teachers’ welfare?”
Akosile described the statement credited to All Progressives Congress (APC) commending the teachers for showing remorse and tendered apologies as uncalled for.
He said the teachers had not been subjected to any dehumanization under Fayose to warrant any lamentation.
The NUT leader added: “Must we apologize for refusing to be intimidated and suppressed by cabal within Fayemi’s administration? Must we apologize for refusing to be coerced into politics? Must we apologize because teachers decided to take their fates in their own hands and resolved to survive beyond Fayemi’s administration,” Akosile queried.
He said his members had no regret for voting Fayose as the validly elected governor during the governorship poll, urging the APC to stop orchestrating fake individuals to act like his members in a manner that could ridicule the body.
He said: “Ekiti teachers have more than enough reasons to vote Fayemi out of government and we can never regret it.”
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