TEACHERS CALL OFF STRIKE

L-R: Executive director Citizens Platform for Democracy and Accountability John Mary Odoy, Mr Busobozi Godfrey, Unatu general secretary James Tweheyo and the executive director of Coalition of Uganda Private School Teachers Association (COUPSTA) Mr Patrick Kaboyo show solidarity after they agreed to end the strike yesterday at the COUPSTA offices in Makerere. PHOTO BY Rachel Mabala 

By PATIENCE AHIMBISIBWE

KAMPALA. Teachers yesterday suspended their strike after government agreed to pay a salary increment of 15 per cent in the 2016/17 financial year. 

In addition, they have also given government up to September to have Shs25 billlion President Museveni pledged in 2011 channelled through their Sacco.
“We have suspended the strike until September when government makes final releases of the first batch of money to our Sacco. We would have wished to win more but it is okay. Any other action will be taken without notice. Commitments are made by government and they don’t live up to them. We hope they will be honest this time round,” Mr James Tweheyo, the Uganda National Teachers’ Union (Unatu) general secretary said yesterday.
Ministry of Education procured Microfinance Support Centre to manage the teachers’ money arguing that the teachers didn’t have the capacity. 
The agreement to call off the strike was reached at during a meeting attended by Unatu district chairpersons across the country in Kampala who voted to suspend the strike yesterday. The teacher representatives were invited by their union leaders to present to them resolutions which had been agreed on in a Monday meeting chaired by Mr David Bahati, the State minister for Economic Planning.
At yesterday’s meeting was Information minister Jim Muhwezi and Mr Bahati to affirm government’s commitment to the teachers. However, there was no official from the Ministry of Education. 
“If you are not well, our children are not well. We had seven meetings yesterday (Monday) and have come up with this document. The government is concerned about your needs and will live up to its promise,” Mr Bahati said.
Reading the government’s statement, Mr Muhwezi asked the teachers to call off their industrial action with immediate effect to enable teaching and learning to resume.
“Government has agreed to provide 15 per cent salary enhancement in the financial year 2016/17. The funds for teachers Saccos will be released to and managed by the union of teachers Sacco Apex. All funds released to the Microfinance Support Centre will be transferred to the said apex body,” Mr Muhwezi said. 
The teachers have had several negotiations with government since they went on strike on May 18, which coincided with the opening of the second term.
Although some of the teachers were not comfortable with the decision, they said their acceptance is to allow pupils resume school but also test government’s commitment.

Private schools

Teachers in private schools yesterday joined their colleagues demanding that government honours its pledge. “We call upon government to prioritise human capital development as an urgent matter because this standoff offers an unacceptable loss of time and teacher contact,” said Mr Patrick Kaboyo, Coalition of Uganda School Teachers Association executive director in support of teachers in public schools.

CREDIT: DAILY MONITOR