Wole Oke’s Aide Recounts How Osun’s 700-Teacher Recruitment Was Halted

 

Two years after a proposed intervention to recruit 700 teachers for public schools in parts of Osun State was suspended, the shortage of teaching staff in many classrooms across the state remains largely unresolved.

The initiative, facilitated through the Education Trust Fund of Hon. Busayo Oluwole Oke, Member representing Ijesa North Federal Constituency, was designed to support the Osun State Government’s efforts at addressing gaps in public primary and secondary schools, particularly in Obokun and Oriade Local Government Areas.

Recounting the process, Omolebi-Sunday Segun Tunde, Senior Media Aide to Hon. Oke, said the intervention was conceived as a complementary measure, not as a substitute for the constitutional responsibility of the state government.

According to Omolebi, he coordinated the recruitment secretariat and worked closely with a screening and interview committee constituted to ensure transparency, professionalism, and institutional balance.

The committee, he said, was chaired by Prof. (Mrs.) Florence Yusuf, an education administrator, and comprised academics, education practitioners, labour leaders, and public office holders.

Members included Dr. Tope Abiola of Osun State Polytechnic, Iree; Mr. Olomolatan Oladele, an educationist and school proprietor; Hon. Sola Adeyekun, Chairman of the Oriade Local Government Education Authority; Barr. Kanmi Ajibola, Member representing Oriade State Constituency at the Osun State House of Assembly; and Hon. Mayowa Anjorin, now Commissioner for Environment, who served in an advisory capacity.

Representatives of the Nigeria Union of Teachers, local government education authorities, and legislative aides were also involved in the process.

Omolebi explained that applications were publicly invited and shortlisted using defined criteria, with screening scheduled to take place at the Ipetu-Ijesa campus of Osun State University (UNIOSUN), selected as a neutral venue.

He said candidates were to undergo aptitude tests, credential verification, oral interviews, and micro-teaching assessments in a single exercise, after which final selections would be made.

“All necessary logistics had been concluded. Panels were constituted, materials prepared, and timelines agreed upon,” he said.

However, the recruitment exercise was halted following an intervention by the Osun State Government. According to Omolebi, there was no formal consultation or framework to harmonise the initiative with the state’s recruitment plans.

Shortly after the suspension, the state government announced an emergency teachers’ recruitment exercise, the outcome of which, two years later, remains unclear.

“No publicly verifiable deployment list has been released, and many public schools continue to struggle with inadequate staffing,” Omolebi said.

He also disclosed that a government circular was issued directing school heads not to accept teachers sponsored by individuals, groups, or Parent-Teacher Associations.

Efforts were made to reach out to the Osun State Government for clarification on the halted intervention and the status of the emergency recruitment, but no response had been received as of press time.

 

According to Omolebi, the suspension affected hundreds of qualified graduates who had applied for the positions and communities where overcrowded classrooms and stretched teaching resources persist.

He stressed that his account was intended to place the facts on record rather than apportion blame.

“In a federation, effective governance depends on cooperation across levels of authority,” Omolebi said. “When collaboration breaks down, policy outcomes, especially in education, are delayed.”

He called for renewed engagement among stakeholders to address the lingering teacher shortage and ensure that interventions translate into tangible improvements in learning outcomes across Osun State.