Teachers have not been paid for remedial programme

Dear Editor,
While the disciplined services will receive their fat bonuses and tax-free salaries in a few days’ time, there is no excuse at all from the government for offering teachers a meagre 1% salary increase. Moreso, it is an utter embarrassment and shame to know that nearly six months after teachers participated in the remedial programme in primary and secondary schools, they have not received a red cent from the Ministry of Education.

At every level the authorities are brushing off questions about when teachers would be paid this money. No one at NCERD knows about the payment. No one at the Ministry of Education knows about the payment. Further-more, graduating teachers of the non-graduate course 2010 batch (the first batch) were told at NCERD that after graduating, they would receive a little increase on their salaries. This was in June. The first batch finished the programme in December of last year. A new batch has begun. Will they be told the same thing at their graduation in 2012 as well? To date, nothing has materialized.

The remedial programme is being disowned; nobody knows anything all of a sudden. Education Officer for Secondary Schools Melcita Bovell sent a circular to schools in June asking for teachers to conduct the programme. Maybe, the money should come out of her pocket. But as we say in Guyana, “Next time dey.”

Yours faithfully,
(Name and address provided)

Editor’s note
We are sending a copy of this letter to PS in the Ministry of Educuation, Mr Pulandar Kandhi, for any comment he might wish to make.