The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has threatened to direct all teachers across the country to down tools if terrorist attacks on schools persist, describing the continued abductions of teachers and students as unbearable and detrimental to the nation’s educational system.
The National President of the union, Comrade Titus Amba, issued the warning on Monday during a world press conference in Abuja. He condemned the recurring attacks on schools and highlighted the severe risks faced by teachers and learners nationwide.
In a statement titled “Stop the Attacks on Schools Now,” the NUT criticized the Federal Government’s Safe Schools Initiative, stating that the programme is ineffective and in urgent need of review.
“This is too much; we cannot take it anymore. We have lost several of our members. Many of our schools remain highly vulnerable—some have no fencing, while others lack teachers’ quarters. These acts of terrorism must stop. We demand immediate action, or we will have no choice but to stay at home,” Comrade Amba said.
The union condemned the gruesome killing of a Vice Principal and a security guard, as well as the abduction of 25 students of Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga, in Danko/Wazagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State. It also decried the kidnapping of over 300 pupils/students and 12 staff members of St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools in Papiri, Agwara LGA of Niger State.
According to the NUT, the attacks are not only assaults on teachers and learners but a direct attack on the foundation of education and sustainable national development.
“The classroom should be a place of safety and hope—a sanctuary for nurturing young minds. To see learning environments destroyed with such brazen violence spells doom for the future of our children and the nation,” the statement read.
The NUT expressed solidarity with the families of abducted students, the slain Vice Principal, and other victims, demanding the immediate release of all kidnapped children. “Every moment they remain in captivity is a scar on our collective conscience,” the union stated.
The teachers’ body also called on the Federal Government and security agencies to intensify efforts to secure all schools and ensure that the perpetrators of the attacks are apprehended and brought to justice.
The union lamented that recent incidents show teachers and students have become “an endangered species,” constantly exposed to traumatic attacks and kidnappings that often result in loss of lives.
The NUT warned that if the attacks continue, it will have no option but to declare a nationwide strike.
“If this ugly and deadly trend persists, the NUT will be left with no other option than to direct all teachers to down tools and remain at home until their safety and security in all schools are guaranteed,” the union stated.
