Over 150 Diploma holders in Agriculture Education from LUANAR-NRC campus have appealed to Ministry of Education to raise the number teachers it intends to recruit, saying they will be left out if Government only recruits 500 teachers.
The development follows Minister of Education Agnes Nyalonje’s statement in the current parliamentary session where she said the ministry will soon recruit 500 secondary school teachers but on internship basis.
The development has since forced over 150 unemployed agriculture teachers from Five Cohorts at LUANAR-NRC campus to form a group aimed at forcing the Ministry of Education to raise the number and consider recruiting diploma holders as well.
In an exclusive interview with Malawi24, chairperson for the group Kelvin Gwedeza said they thought of forming the group because they graduated as teachers but actually the probability of getting employed in government as secondary school teacher within Grade J, is low.
Gwedeza said they first approached LUANAR officials to ask them as to why Diploma holders from this university more especially teachers are for the past three years not getting employed but the officials did not reply to any of their emails.
The chairperson added that in February this year, the group met the Principal Secretary for Education Chikondano Mussa and the Director of Human Resources Management who told them that in March they will release the Vacancy which everyone including the Diploma holders will be encouraged to apply.
However, Gwedeza said they are saddened by Nyalonje’s parliamentary address claiming there is contradictions within the officials in the ministry adding that five hundred is just a small number which will at the end see them being left out.
In addition to that, he said it is worrisome that some of these diploma holders have been denied an opportunity for three years yet there are more T2 Certificate holders working as secondary School Teachers in most CDSSs in the country.
“We are against the Recruitment of 500 Teachers because we already know that Domasi College of Education has also 500 Diploma Holders who are still waiting for this opportunity as well on top of that we are just a group of Graduates which is hardly recognised by Ministry of Education while our Chancellor is the State President himself. On the other hand, we also feel that they may favour degree holders.
“We would like government through the Ministry of Education to release the Vacancy which will specify that they will recruit at least 800 Diploma Graduates,” said Gwedeza.
He added that it is bad to hear reports that there is new government policy that desist diploma holders from teaching in Secondary Schools yet in other sectors like Health service Diploma holders are proudly working as nurses and Clinical officers.
Gwedeza continued to say that if these five cohorts will be left unemployed, they will go to parliament to ask the lawmakers more especially the Education Committee to show them which Diplomas are valid for consideration.
