Stop politicking, pay seed school teachers
What you need to know:
The issue: Teachers’ welfare
Our view: In this extremely harsh economy it is inconceivable to go a year without pay and deliver anything sensible. And then we organize and waste time in high level meetings trying to find clever solutions to the problems in our education system, wondering why the quality of pupils produced in some of these schools is poor. These are some of the obvious reasons.
According to Mr Deo Kato, the acting head teacher, staff have not received salaries since January when the school officially opened. The teachers are at the mercy of parents who contribute some money for their upkeep.
Mr Kato revealed that they wrote to the Ministry of Education about the need to get funds to run the school, but were promised that this would be effected next financial year (2023-2024). In regard to this sad state of affairs, Bukomansimbi Deputy RDC, Mr Fred Kalema, said politicians in the area hijacked the management of the school, forcing the government to suspend funding. (See Daily Monitor December 21, 2022- “Seed school teachers go for a year without salary”) Just when we thought the problems in the education sector couldn’t get worse, we hear this.
Government’s plan to ensure that every sub-county has a seed school is commendable but that the teachers at some of these schools are not paid nor the school equipped with necessary tools for effective education to be conducted, is a huge step in the opposite direction.
The school in question, apart from teachers not being paid, has no apparatus, chemicals, and this makes teaching and learning of sciences very difficult.
Whatever politics surrounds the ill management of this school should be resolved and the staff paid what is due to them and the same must be done for any other seed schools that might be suffering this cruel fate. Pay up or close the schools.
In this extremely harsh economy it is inconceivable to go a year without pay and deliver anything sensible. And then we organize and waste time in high level meetings trying to find clever solutions to the problems in our education system, wondering why the quality of pupils produced in some of these schools is poor. These are some of the obvious reasons. You cannot boast of having a vibrant education sector when there are such stories. This must be fixed quickly.
Stop politicking and fix the gaping holes in our education system.
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