The Sierra Leone Teachers Union (SLTU) has called on President Julius Maada Bio to urgently address what it describes as a looming crisis in the education sector, following the suspension of over 4,000 teachers from the government payroll.

The affected teachers were removed after a recent verification exercise aimed at eliminating ghost workers. However, SLTU says the process has left many genuine, active teachers without pay, despite them having already undergone verification.

In its statement, the union pointed out that some schools were not visited by verification teams, while others have legitimate cases of teachers who resigned, abandoned their posts, or died — instances they agree should be cleared from the system. But they stress that penalizing teachers who are still in service is unjust and threatens the stability of the new academic year.

“This is not just a salary issue — it’s about safeguarding the future of education in Sierra Leone,” the SLTU emphasized, warning that if the matter is not resolved swiftly, the smooth reopening of schools in September could be at risk.

While backing the government’s commitment to cleaning up the payroll, the union insists that all re-verified, legitimate teachers must be reinstated without delay to ensure continuity in teaching and allow for the recruitment of additional qualified staff.

The SLTU has formally appealed to President Bio to intervene before the situation escalates, stressing that education delivery must remain a top national priority.