Malawi teachers threaten to go on strike again

Advertisement
Malawi teachers

Teachers in the country have asked Malawi National Examinations Board (MANEB) to pay all invigilators and supervisors their 2017 invigilation allowances before August 31, 2017 or else all teachers will put tools down in September.

Teachers through Teachers Union of Malawi (TUM) have faulted MANEB for failing to pay allowances to teachers who supervised and invigilated the 2017 Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) exams.

In a statement issued by TUM and signed by its secretary Charles Kumchenga, the teachers’ body says it is not happy with MANEB’s conduct of delaying the allowances every year.

Malawi teachers
Teachers cold start yet another strike. (Library)

“TUM wishes to express great shock over the shameful conduct of MANEB of always taking teachers for granted when it comes to payment of their hard earned supervision and invigilation allowances. We fail to understand the reason why MANEB should have the audacity of hiring teachers to administer National Examinations and yet they fail to pay the teachers, after they efficiently and effectively administer the examinations.

“TUM expects all the 2017 invigilators and the supervisors to be paid their deserved allowances latest by 31st August 2017 failure of which shall attract a call to all teachers not to open schools in September 2017,” reads the statement.

According to the union, the allowances are supposed to be paid in advance before the hired teachers commence their task of supervision and invigilation as a package to facilitate their smooth implementation of their task.

TUM in the statement claims that it has now and again knocked on the door of MANEB over the matter but the exam body has been saying that Treasury is yet to fund it.

“We are stunned to be informed that Treasury is yet to fund MANEB, yet the MSCE examinations were planned way back from last year. The general public may recall that the 2016 MSCE invigilation allowances were also paid in confrontational manner as TUM had called for an industrial action which prompted MANEB and Treasury to act in a fire fight manner,” reads the statement in part.

Teachers union has since urged the Treasury to swiftly provide the required funding to MANEB so that “innocent and silent suffering teachers should be paid their hard earned allowances.”

The union has warned that the suitability and integrity of senior officers at Treasury and MANEB will be questioned if the allowances are not given to teachers by the end of August.