Saboi Imboela – SI
FRUSTRATIONS HIT MOST TEACHERS AS GOVERNMENT FAILS TO NORMALISE AND UPGRADE THE SERVING TEACHERS
18/09/2022
When we said that not all the recruited teachers would be assimilated into the system as there is no infrastructure to accommodate such a huge number at the same time, some people thought we were just talking from without. However, today all well meaning Zambians who have been following this ‘recruitment of 30,496’ teachers can now attest to the failure by the UPND led government to have all these teachers put on the payroll and subsequently into classrooms to teach our children.
The NDC, as a party, feels and stands with all those who have not yet been put on payroll and we hope and pray this will be done as soon as possible. The development of any nation is highly dependent on how well organized its education system is. So we passionately talk about the education sector because we realize how important it is to our country and our people in Zambia. We also observe with sadness what our teachers are going through in our country.
By the same token, the government has yet again failed to address the issues of upgrades and normalization for serving teachers. This is causing serious frustration for most of our teachers around the country. A number of teachers have spent their hard earned resources to go to school to upgrade their qualifications with the hope of either being promoted or having their salaries upgraded. This has, unfortunately, remained a dream for most of them years later.
The current government decided to employ new teachers who in some cases are getting paid higher salaries than those who are already in the system. In others words, some of the already serving teachers upgraded their qualifications from certificate to diploma and degree so that the government would either consider them for promotion professionally or for a salary upgrade. But from the out cries reaching us, the government has failed to do so. This is despite the government having promised them to do that.
According to the affected teachers, the fact that the government has deployed new teachers who have diploma and degrees and their salaries are higher than some of the old teachers in the system, what this means is that the already serving teachers are faced with a situation where they taught some of these newly deployed teachers who are now coming into the system with higher salaries than them. For some, it is even more frustrating as their own children in the homes who have become teachers are now getting paid more than their parents.
Apparently, some teacher unions have tried to engage government but to no avail, and that if anything has come out it is happening at a snail’s pace. All we are seeing is a government which is in a hurry to impress and suppress concerned stakeholders in the matter, but in the process it is creating more harm and damage to our education system by creating frustrated teachers.
As NDC, we are saying that Zambia deserves better and this begins with a motivated work force. We stand and feel for all affected teachers and we promise not to keep quiet on behalf of the voiceless. When these teachers try to talk, they are threatened with dismissals and transfers. This must never be the case in a democracy. Our appeal to the President Mr. Hakainde Hichilema is to quickly look into this huge and silent cancer that is growing in our education sector.
Let us respect our teachers who are busy making our future leaders as a nation. Upgrade teachers who deserve to be upgraded and write normalization letters to those who have been upgraded but have not been written to. Honestly, all it takes is just a letter, but people are failing to write to make some of our teachers motivated and work freely. Remember, a motivated teacher is equal to good results. We can do better as a nation.
Issued by;
Saboi Imboela
President- NDC