Teachers call on parents to send children to schools
Teachers in Central Equatoria State are appealing to parents to send their children to school as the education calendar draws to a close with final examinations in mid-February.
The state’s Secretary-General of the Teachers’ Union, Justine Walak, lamented the low turnout of students for classes after teachers resumed duties following an agreement over the implementation of a new salary scale.
Mr Walak told The City Review on Tuesday that he had received only seven students out of more than 200 total on Tuesday for both classrooms. Walak said this was not a cause for alarm.
“We are appealing to parents to send their children to schools because teaching has started and the time is running,” Mr Walak said.
“They should now ensure their children come for classes because the problem is not the teachers now,” he said.
Central Equatoria State teachers went on strike in December 2021 demanding full implementation of the pay rise inclusive of allowances, which the state government had denied them. The deadlock interfered with learning in the whole state.
The Minister of General Education and Instruction, Awut Deng Acuil, revealed that the education conditional transfer to states was inclusive of allowances, prompting the Central Equatoria to begin processing teachers’ salaries.
Acuil had also directed all the state governors and three area administrators to pay teachers a 100 per cent salary increment in compliance with President Salva Kiir’s directive in July last year.
“The state government started paying them on Monday and as I am talking, they are already receiving their money,” said Dr Andruga Mabe, the Central Equatoria State Minister of Information on Tuesday.
Mr Walak confirmed the commencement of the payment using the new salary scale but said teachers in counties would soon get theirs as the government was still facing logistical challenges.
“They have started to pay teachers, but it has not reached teachers in counties. The government is trying to send the money, and they will get it very soon,” Mr Walak said.
