The Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi has restated his commitment to the payment of   teachers salaries on the 15th  of every month .

Umahi, who received a delegation of the state council of Nigeria Union of Teachers  in Abakaliki, said his directive was in spite of the fact that allocation from the Federation Account get to the states a month after.

He explained    that his administration was not prepared to toy with the welfare of teachers because of their importance to the upbringing of future leaders.

Umahi  frowned at the poor performance of Ebonyi State students in the West African Examination Council evaluation    and  charged the NUT to re-evaluate its members first before the middle of January 2016.

According to him, his administration    would also  be re-evaluate the teachers next year, because “we can’t continue to come last in WAEC evaluation.  We need to come from between one and three.”

He noted that the re-evaluation of teachers was necessary to arrest the dwindling academic standard in the state    since “we cannot afford to mortgage the future of our children.”

The governor    however assured that no teacher would be disengaged as a result of the re-evaluation.

Umahi    told the   NUT to liaise with the    Commissioner for Education, Prof. John Eke, to come up with a programme that would enable the government mount consistent and effective supervision of schools.

He  said that in    spite    of the economic hardship in the country, the state government had resolved    to put smiles on the faces of its workforce.

He said, “ During this Christmas, every teacher must go home with a bag of rice.    In this Christmas every senior civil servant must receive 50    per cent salary bonus and every junior civil servant must receive 100 per cent salary bonus.”