The European Union is taking legal action against the UK for breaching the Brexit agreement they both reached last year.

Early last month, Brandon Lewis, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, hinted that the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his government are preparing a legislation that will “break international law in a very specific and limited way” and alter some of the contents of the Brexit deal.

Part of the move involves altering the Northern Ireland protocol, which includes keeping the border open between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which was part of the agreement reached between Johnson’s government and Brussels last year.

The move by the UK government has tension flaring between London and Brussels and drew international condemnation, with the United States’ House Speaker Nancy Pelosi warning that it could impact the US’ trade relationship with the UK. One EU diplomat, who spoke on anonymity told CNN last month: “If the UK chose not to respect it, then theoretically the EU would have to take legal measures.”

Now the EU is living up to that statement by taking legal steps to address the matter. The President of EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen said part of the steps the EU has taken to address the matter is inviting the UK to “remove the problematic arts of their draft internal market bill by the end of September.”

She added that “the draft bill is by its very nature a breach of the obligation of good faith laid down in the Withdrawal Agreement, and will be in full contradiction of the Northern Ireland Protocol.”

The Northern Protocol means that the only land border between the UK and EU on the island of Ireland will remain open and there’ll be no need for border checks. The UK legislation will mean border checks that could rekindle the past history of violence between Ireland and Northern Ireland.

The explanation given by the UK said the legislation is geared toward fostering seamless trade between four UK nations in case they reach a no deal Brexit at the end of the year. That means, it may not have to use the legislation if a deal is reached.

However, the legislation, being a breach of existing agreement couldn’t be ignored by the EU. The Commission therefore, writes a letter of formal notice to the UK, a standing procedure for the body in any case of infringement, to notify them of its stand.

“The letter invites the UK government to send its observations within a month and besides this the Commission will continue to work hard towards full and timely implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement. We stand by our commitment,” von der Leyen concluded.

While the EU awaits response, the trade talks between London and Brussels are entering its final phase. CNN reported that the last formal round of talks are taking place right now and an EU summit will take place on October 15, where negotiators hope a deal will be on the table for EU leaders to approve.

The two sides are more likely to reach a deal, though there are disagreements over key issues that revolve around ‘UK’s ability to use state aid in order to prop up British businesses.’ According to the report, the EU says this could give British companies an unfair advantage over EU companies.

Among many other issues of dispute are fishing rights and governance. As the conflict of interest grows, both sides are also preparing for a no deal which will mean the UK sticking to its legislation and the EU proceeding with legal action.

As the UK nears its one-month deadline for response, the barrage of conflicting issues from both sides of the negotiation forays uncertainties. CNN reported that the timeline for the UK’s response to the EU’s letter means a deal could be reached in the meantime. But there is a danger, the report noted. There is increasing concern over what each side could concede on, and only a few people know exactly what either side could let go of.

So the negotiation could swirl unprecedentedly from a deal to a no deal by default, and getting a deal will mean that one side will have to yield, which means moving the dial to favor one side.

In Igbo language, a teacher is referred to “onye nkuzi”, that is “a formator”. Actually, the term literally means “a person that forms good shapes by hitting on it”. It can also mean a person that “reforms what was deformed”. But at the deeper level, a teacher is seen as a master of knowledge, a man of integrity and a hardworking fellow. Then, parents send their “stubborn” and “lazy” children to live with teachers so that they will be “reformed”. In those days, the advice people give to parents of wayward children is to find a teacher that will help them to “refine and press out the good in the children”. I don’t know if the teachers of these days can boast of maintaining the status quo instituted by their predecessors.

An essay I came across today accused teachers of being responsible for the high rate of dishonesty in the society. This article, titled “The Death of Honesty”, by William Damon, asserts that schools no longer give priority to the teaching of honesty as a virtue. The writer states that children need to be formed when they are still young so that they can continue with what was instilled in them throughout their lives. Of course, since children spend most of their time in school, it is believed that teachers have greater chances of forming them than their parents.

But then, William Damon pointed out three major ways teachers encourage the increase in dishonesty in the society. The first one was that many teachers aid and abet cheating amongst students. Well, if we look at what is happening in Nigeria today, we will agree with the American writer that even Nigerian teachers do the same thing. Unfortunately, many Nigerian teachers engage in this act because they are not paid well.

The second issue raised by Damon is that some teachers look the other way when students are cheating. According to him, this group of teachers behave this way because they want to avoid troubles. Damon gave legal action and contention as the troubles these teachers wanted to avoid, but in Nigeria, the troubles the teachers run away from are more than ordinary argument or legal action. We have heard of students that threatened and harmed their teachers because they were caught and penalised for cheating in exam halls. Worse is that schools do not compensate teachers that pass through such an ordeal. Instead they will be told to use their discretion next time.

The third concern raised by Damon is that many teachers make excuses for students that engage in exam malpractice. According to him, teachers are fond of saying that students cheat only when the exams are difficult. As absurd as this might sound, it happens. You might be surprised that some teachers, especially during external exams, tell invigilators to allow students to copy from one another or to consult their textbooks right there in the exam hall because the questions were off scheme. Well, the only reason a teacher will make excuses for students in situations like this is that he failed to do his job properly.

It might be strange to you that a paper written by an American for the American society in 2012 reflects what is happening in Nigeria. It is just a clear indication that teachers all over the world are losing their grips on integrity. Things are changing and our teachers are changing too, but mostly on the negative side. Maybe it is high time society allowed teachers to do their jobs. If there is no fear of students waylaying their teachers and harming them; if there is no anxiety that parents may demand for the sack of a teacher; if there is no fear of where the next meal will come from when a job is lost, believe me, the past glory of teachers will be restored.