News Update
Fresh controversy has emerged over the recruitment of teachers in Osun State as the government and the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, differed sharply, giving different accounts on the status and sincerity of the exercise.
The Osun State Government said the process of issuing letters of appointment to the first batch of newly recruited teachers is underway.
It also dismissed claims that senior officials are deliberately frustrating the exercise.
In a statement issued in Osogbo, the spokesperson to the Governor, Olawale Rasheed, said “the directive of Governor Ademola Adeleke was being implemented by relevant agencies in line with established procedures”.
Rasheed while explaining that earlier delays were linked to funding challenges and the implementation of the new minimum wage, stressed that neither the Head of Service nor the Chief of Staff was obstructing the process.
According to him, “The State Universal Basic Education Board, SUBEB, and the Teaching Service Commission, TESCOM, are jointly coordinating the deployment of successful candidates under the supervision of the Ministry of Education.
“Reports suggesting that top government officials are blocking the release of letters of appointment are false.
Officials involved were working hard to ensure the successful completion of the first phase.”
Urging media organisations to seek clarification from official sources, he noted that the recruitment exercise remained ongoing and that updates would be communicated as milestones are achieved.
However, the Osun State chapter of the APC disputed the government’s position and questioned the genuineness of the Adeleke administration’s commitment to recruiting teachers more than three years after assuming office.
In a separate statement by the Osun APC Director of Media and Information, Kola Olabisi, the opposition party accused the government of relying on mere rhetoric rather than concrete action, particularly over plans to replace teachers disengaged in 2022.
The APC alleged that the administration lacked clarity on the actual number of teachers to be recruited and criticised public explanations offered by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi.
“How can a government announce readiness to recruit teachers without clearly stating the figures involved or the cost implications?”
The party insisting that such gaps undermined public confidence also rejected the government’s claim that limited access to local government funds was responsible for delays.
The APC argued that constitutional provisions and court rulings had clarified the autonomy of local councils.
It further contended that the state government had received substantial allocations since coming into office and should not attribute recruitment challenges solely to financial constraints.
The APC said it remained unconvinced and described the exercise as a kick-and-start approach driven by political pressure. (DAILY POST)