Pay teachers fully, Achuil tells state governments
The Minister of Education and General Education, Awut Deng Achuil, has ordered state governors and area administrators to make full payment of teachers’ salaries, including allowances.
Ms. Awut said her ministry had continued to receive complaints from state ministries of education that the conditional transfers that were meant to run schools and pay teachers had not reached teachers and schools in some states.
“We are reliably informed that some state governors do divert these funds for other uses, which contravene the conditions under which the funds are transferred. Those states that paid teachers only basic salaries without allowances must pay in full the basic plus allowances because it comes as a package with inclusive allowances, ” said Achuil.
The statement came at a time when teachers in Central Equatoria and the Jonglei states refused to accept basic salaries without allowances and refused to resume duty till all dues are paid.
“We were very much disturbed after learning that one of the main columns of the new salary structure, which is the nature of work, had been omitted without any proper explanation.”
“It contradicts the statement of the president to increase salaries of civil servants by 100 per cent, which was, actually, approved by the national council of ministers chaired by the president,” Justine Walak, the secretary-general of the Central Equatoria Teachers Union, said.
Dr Andruga Mabe, the Central Equatoria State Minister of Information, confirmed the omission of the said allowances from the new salary scale according to the budget the state received from the national government.
“When we increased, it was only minus one column. That is the nature of work.” We had several columns indicating the same salary to be paid, and the salary as a whole is the total of the columns.
“We started by doubling the existing salary, we did not implement that part, which is ‘nature of the work’ according to what we have in our budget scale,” Dr Mabe told the City Review early this month.
But Achuil told the media on Friday that the 100 per cent increment President Salva Kiir ordered last year covers both salaries and allowances of civil servants, and that omitting other columns was a violation.
“I therefore hereby make it clear that education conditional transfer to the states and the administrative areas is purely meant for the delivery of educational services.” Any diversion to these funds not only violate the conditions under which the funds are transferred, but it does also demoralise teachers and all the stakeholders in education, ” said Ms. Achuil.
Darius Okeny Oridi, director-general for human Resources in the ministry of labour and public service, said the new salary structure was done in consultation with the cabinet after the president issued the order of 100 per cent increment for both national and state government’s employees.
He explained that the pay scale of all employees from grades 1 to 17 entails all the packages that belong to a particular pay scale of each grade, but some institutions misinterpreted the 100 per cent increment, excluding other packages.
“However, the misinterpretation that some states might have derived is what we wonder why and who, actually misinterpreted it for them. They should have had a consultation with the origin of the salary structure so that they are informed. “
To the best of our knowledge, we are quite aware that the minister of finance multiplied the 2020/2021 budget by two, which means the total amount for the filing given for the personal budget was multiplied by two, which means it encompasses all the allowances, ” said Mr. Okeny.
