Enugu State Teachers’ Recruitment: 6,700 Applicants Jostle For 380 Vacant Position 

The Enugu State Post Primary School Management Board (PPSMB) has kicked off the recruitment process for 380 teaching positions in various secondary schools across the state. According to the board’s chairman, Fr. Hilary Mgbodile, over 12,000 applications were received, but only 6,700 were shortlisted for the examination.

The examination, which took place on Saturday, was held at five designated centers across the state. The applicants were tested in English, Information Communication Technology (ICT), Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry. Notably, while over 2,000 applicants vied for English teaching positions, only 80 were required, with 1,700 applying for ICT.

The PPSMB has a high standard for the selection process, and Mgbodile stressed that only the best candidates would be hired. “We cannot lower our standards because we cannot get what we want,” he said. The board is working with an independent recruiting company to ensure meritocracy and objectivity in the selection process.

However, the chairman revealed that a significant number of applicants were excluded from the examination due to various reasons. Some were non-indigenes of Enugu State, while others were overaged (45 years old). Additionally, those without the requisite qualifications for their chosen subjects or those awaiting their statements of result were not considered.

The PPSMB chairman explained that the recruitment drive was necessitated by the shortage of teachers in Enugu’s secondary schools, particularly in rural areas. The board had previously posted teachers from urban areas to rural schools but still faced a shortage of teachers in key subjects like sciences. Governor Peter Mbah’s directive led to the recruitment exercise to fill these gaps.

Mgbodile emphasized that the board aims to restore the legacy of teaching and learning in public schools and regain parents’ confidence in them. The goal is to make it easier for parents to send their children to public schools instead of private or mission schools. The board hopes to achieve this by recruiting competent professionals who studied engineering and other relevant subjects to teach science and other core subjects.