TEACHERS SLEEPING CLASSROOMS FOR LACK OF ACCOMMODATION
PS EDUCATION WEIGHS IN ON THE ACCOMMODATION ISSUE OF TEACHERS
The editorial comment in the Mast yesterday relied on former Education Minister Dr. Kaingu who raised concerns regarding accommodation for the newly recruited teachers. The paper agreed with his concerns as evidence abounds that there is a general shortage of infrastructure of any kind in this country.
Yes, the President has commented on this issue before challenging the private sector to move in and fill the void. It is a viable option but easier said than done. It is possible but not as fast as recruiting teachers which has been done within months. You cannot build or find houses to accommodate 30,000 teachers in months! It is impossible.
The reality is found in what PS Education said, namely, that government has heard the concerns of the stakeholders and that government will be engaging them so that together the solution could be found. He said government was aware that when it offered free education, there will be need to recruit more teachers which naturally would demand an increase in accommodation.
In other words, government does not have immediate answers or solutions to the problem of accommodation brought about by its decision to recruit such a huge number of teachers in one swoop. The answers lie in the consultation with like-mined policy networks. So, for those of you obsessed only with the news of the recruited teachers, I have news for you: unless or until you sober up and help government find answers to the problem of teacher accommodation, the policy decision will fail.
It will fail because some teachers will not remain in their allocated geographical areas because there will be no place to live. This is one of the classic examples of why public policy fails: failure by other members of the policy network to play their respective roles. Do not drown voices of reason and caution that are alerting the powers that be to the looming threats against what is otherwise a welcome development in service delivery and fulfilment of election promises.
My challenge to the media is embark on the next phase of this story by sharing experiences from the newly recruited teachers and the communities that await them. When we know this back-end of policy delivery, relevant authorities shall be in a better position to deploy timely interventions to correct any threats to the successful implementation and delivery of public policy.