Published: October 2, 2026
MONROVIA — Teachers and other employees of the Monrovia Consolidated School System have intensified their go-slow action, vowing to report to work but stay out of classrooms until the government addresses longstanding salary, welfare and working-condition concerns they say remain unresolved despite more than a year of negotiations.
By Blamo N. Toe
The workers also challenged MCSS Superintendent Dr. Augurie E. Stevens over reported threats to replace employees who refuse to teach, saying she could seek teachers from Nigeria, Ghana or Togo if she intends to dismiss Liberian educators participating in the protest.
The declaration was made Thursday at a major news conference in Monrovia by the Faculty Representative Council, MCSS Teachers Association, volunteers, caretakers, security personnel, school administrators and other workers.
MCSS Teachers Association President Augustine N. Nyormui said the employees are reinforcing their industrial action because the government has allegedly failed to implement commitments contained in a March 27, 2025, memorandum of understanding.
The agreement, he said, followed negotiations involving the teachers association, government representatives, and other stakeholders, including the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the National Legislature, the Liberia National Student Union, the Federation of Liberian Youth, MCSS authorities, and the Mano River Youth Parliament.
Nyormui instructed teachers and other association members to continue reporting to their respective schools and signing attendance records but refrain from teaching until their leadership announces otherwise.
“We call on all of our Association’s members to remain calm, peaceful, diligent, professional and regularly report to work and sign in the attendance book but do not make an attempt to enter into the classroom to teach students until you can hear from us as your leaders,” Nyormui said.
‘We Will Sign, But We Will Not Enter Class’
Nyormui stressed that the workers are not abandoning their jobs or refusing to report to school.
Instead, he said, they will remain on their campuses while withholding classroom instruction as part of the protest.
“All of us will go and sign, including myself. We sign, but we will not get in class,” he said. “If they commit to us, trust us, we will go fast. We will go teach.”
He insisted the action should not be interpreted as a political campaign against President Joseph Boakai’s administration.
“People should not think that we are against this government,” Nyormui said. “This government is our government, right? But the government has to put something good on the table for us.”
Using hunger to illustrate the financial difficulties workers say they face, Nyormui argued that teachers cannot be expected to perform effectively while their basic welfare concerns remain unresolved.
“Government has to put food on the table,” he said.
According to him, the workers believe they have exhausted the negotiation stage after engaging the government for more than a year without securing implementation of the commitments they are demanding.
“We are no longer negotiating because we have negotiated over a year,” he said.
Nyormui said the workers do not want politicians or government officials claiming credit for resolving the dispute only when tensions escalate, arguing that the focus should instead be on implementing commitments already reached.
Nyormui Rejects Threats of Dismissal
The association president also took direct aim at Superintendent Stevens over what he described as threats to dismiss teachers who refuse to return to classrooms.
Nyormui said the workers are not intimidated.
“So fire people. Where are you going to take people?” he asked.
He then challenged the superintendent to find replacement teachers outside Liberia if she intends to remove trained MCSS educators.
“She can go to Nigeria. She can go Ghana. She can go Togo,” Nyormui said, arguing that Liberian teachers within the MCSS are professionally trained and qualified.
“They always boast that Ghanaian teachers, Nigerian teachers are the best. But we know we are trained. In fact, some of us are even overqualified, and so we don’t have fear. We are not even worried.”
Nyormui maintained that the workers’ action will continue despite the administration’s insistence that schools operate.
“We are saying school will not open, and we challenge the authority,” he said.
The association leader also accused the MCSS administration of attempting to investigate him over his role in the workers’ agitation.
According to Nyormui, he responded to an invitation from an investigative committee but objected when officials allegedly attempted to take possession of his phone.
“When they called me, I went. They wanted to take my phone. Take my phone on the basis of what?” he said.
Nyormui said he would cooperate with legitimate inquiries but would not submit himself to what he characterized as an improper investigation.
“I will not submit myself to any kangaroo investigation,” he said. “Anybody who wants to talk to me, you invite me in my capacity as a sitting president.”
He said the association’s office remains open for engagement with authorities.
Workers Raise Alarm Over School Conditions
Beyond their employment concerns, Nyormui said poor conditions at several MCSS campuses are also affecting teachers and students.
He alleged that some school buildings remain in poor condition, with inadequate furniture, office equipment and instructional materials.
“As we speak, I tour MCSS schools to see what is happening. Our buildings are messed up — not only the classrooms, our offices,” he said. “Many of our schools are in bad condition.”
Nyormui questioned whether resources reportedly allocated for school improvements are sufficient to address the scale of the problems across the MCSS.
He particularly cited shortages of chairs and other basic materials, saying some principals are struggling to recondition old furniture.
“Even chairs, principals are reconditioning chairs,” he said.
Nyormui also complained about what he described as a shortage of stationery and other basic supplies at schools.
“No stationery, no stationery,” he said.
The association president further claimed that some recent workshops organized by MCSS authorities were poorly attended by teachers, which he presented as evidence of growing dissatisfaction among employees.
According to him, elementary, secretarial, and other workshops failed to attract the expected level of participation.
Teachers Rally Behind Former Superintendent Dr. John A. Momoh
The teachers association also used Thursday’s news conference to renew its demand for action concerning former MCSS Superintendent Dr. John A. Momoh, who Nyormui said was suspended by President Boakai pending an investigation.
Nyormui maintained that the subsequent investigation did not establish corruption allegations against the former superintendent and questioned why Momoh has remained out of office for more than a year.
According to the association president, Momoh was cleared following the investigation but has yet to receive what Nyormui described as formal clearance.
He demanded that the relevant authorities issue Momoh the clearance if, as the association maintains, the investigation found no wrongdoing.
Nyormui further alleged that the original investigative findings concerning Momoh were subsequently mishandled before reaching the President. The association president did not provide documentary evidence at the news conference to substantiate that allegation independently.
He said the teachers are demanding that Dr. John A. Momoh be reinstated and compensated for the period he has remained out of office.
Nyormui argued that the superintendent position carries a four-year tenure and maintained that Momoh should not lose the position over corruption allegations if those allegations were not substantiated.
The association president warned that legal action could be considered if the relevant authorities fail to formally address Momoh’s status.
Nyormui made the claims about the investigation, its findings, and the alleged handling of the report at the news conference, and The Liberian Investigator did not independently verify them.
Workers Dig In as Dispute Continues
Thursday’s declaration signals a deepening standoff between MCSS employees and the administration as thousands of students depend on the public school system for their education in Monrovia and surrounding communities.
The workers insist they are not abandoning their campuses. Their strategy, according to Nyormui, is to continue reporting for duty, sign attendance records and remain peaceful — while refusing to teach.
For the association, the dispute has moved beyond another round of negotiations and promises.
“We are no longer negotiating because we have negotiated over a year,” Nyormui said.
And as the confrontation over possible dismissals intensifies, Nyormui said the workers remain prepared to test whether MCSS can operate without them.
“So fire people. Where are you going to take people?” he said. “She can go to Nigeria. She can go Ghana. She can go Togo.”
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