An Open Wound in the Heart of Nigeria’s Capital
For 63 days, pupils in public primary schools across the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have been at home — not by choice, not on break, but abandoned in the middle of an unresolved strike.
No morning assembly. No sound of pencils scratching paper. No “A for Apple.” No “Good morning, teacher.” No learning. Just waiting.
But the question that haunts me is simple: What have these children been doing?
They are 5, 6, 9, 10 years old.
- Some now follow their parents to the market to sell sachet water.
- Some stay home all day watching cartoons — the lucky ones with light or devices.
- Some are exposed to risks they shouldn’t even know exist.
- Many have started forgetting how to read, how to spell, how to believe in a future.
And these are not children in remote villages — they are children in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city.
This is Not Just a Strike. This is a Crisis.
We are not just counting days; we are counting missed meals, lost lessons, and silent traumas.
While the government and area councils argue over salaries and agreements, the dreams of FCT’s most vulnerable children are slowly slipping into shadows.
We call these pupils the future leaders of Nigeria, but we have shown them that their education is negotiable, delayable, expendable.
Where Is the Outrage?
How does a 9-week shutdown of primary education in the capital city of Africa’s largest economy not spark national concern?
Where are the urgent town halls? Where are the emergency learning centres? Where is the minister of education? Where is the basic humanity?
And where are we — the people who claim to care?
What Will We Say to These Children Tomorrow?
That their early learning years were taken from them without a fight? That we didn’t shout loud enough because it wasn’t trending? That their pain didn’t make the news because they were “just primary school kids”?
They may not understand labour disputes, but they understand disappointment. They understand hunger. They understand broken promises.
We Must Act.
We need:
✅ Immediate resolution and implementation of teacher agreements ✅ Catch-up education strategies for affected pupils ✅ Public pressure from CSOs, youth, parents, religious and traditional leaders ✅ Visibility — on every social media platform, in every conversation
These are children in our capital, and we cannot leave them behind.
Because if we let the children of Abuja suffer in silence for 63 days — what hope is left for children anywhere else in Nigeria?
Speak up. Show up. Act.
For the children in FCT public primary schools who have waited long enough.
#FCTPrimarySchoolStrike #63DaysTooLong #EducationCrisis #ChildRightsNow #BasicEducationMatters #CYPFCrew #NigeriaEducation #FutureAtRisk #WhereAreTheChildren
Jedidiah Osoba
