By Tendai Chisiri
Parents and guardians have labelled teachers teachers who are saying we are incapacitated as selfish and milking their hard earned salaries amd the disgrunted teachers should leave the profession if it is not paying for them.
Collective and individual statement from teachers unions stated that teachers should not be reprimanded for failing to report for duty on 7 February when the schools open and also that teachers were going to report for duty for 2 days a week due to port rumen ration by the ministry.
The teacher’s call has been ridiculed by some parents and guardians who feel the teachers are being inconsiderate instead of being noble.
“If the teachers don’t want to teach the whole 5 days a week then they should leave the profession or find greener pasture elsewhere”, said a guardian on condition of annonimty in Tynwald South Harare on Sunday.
The teaching profession has not been rosy for long in Zimbabwe with teachers at one time suggesting that their children should be given free education.
In 2006 Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe ( PTUZ) secretary general Raymond Manjongwe pressured for teachers’ children to be given free education but the government did not take heed.
A massive exodus of teachers to neighbouring countries like Namibia,Swaziland,South Africa,Lesotho and Mozambique has been experienced from the early 2000s as the government fair to take proper care on the welfare of teachers.
Parents and guardians think that teachers are taking hostage of the pupils instead of being creative and look for other sources of income whilst teaching.
“The ministry can take temporary teachers if those teaching quit”, said the guardian in Tynwald South. Most parents and guardians interviewed said the teachers were wrong for proposing to teach two days in a week as this hampered the education of pupils.
Although there is a backlog of teachers failing to secure employment after training, the government is failing to meet demand of those at work.
“I trained as a teacher and did my teaching practise but now I have street my own study group which is profitable as parents are paying in US dollars unlike the government.”, said a teacher in Harare on condition of annonymity.
Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has not issued a statement on the declaration of incapacitation by teachers yet.
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