Jagdeo says
calls for investigation into allocation of duty-free concessions amidst allegations of favoritism.

PEOPLE’S Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, on Thursday, accused the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU), for attempting to mislead workers and pushing their own agenda.

“So GTU has been telling a lot of lies to the teachers,” Dr. Jagdeo said during a press conference at Freedom House, where he also brought to light damning accusations that are being levelled against the executive members of the GTU.

Furthermore, with there being a large number of accusations that the administering of the concessions by the union is being done based on a friends and family system, the PPP General Secretary further stated: “I said to the President and others that we need to investigate the hundreds of duty-free concessions that were given to the GTU.”

On Monday, President Dr. Irfaan Ali had a consultation with headteachers and their deputies from the country’s 11 school districts at State House.

What has sparked somewhat a controversy is that the teachers echoed different sentiments as compared to what the executive members of the union have been putting forth.

Instead of salary increases, teachers asked for more allowances and even special housing loans, all of which the President provided a listening ear.

While there were executive representatives from the union present, Dr. Jagdeo stated the reason President Ali’s consultation with the teachers was thrown in a negative light was because the meeting posed a threat to the personal agenda of certain officials in the GTU.

He related: “…The last thing they wanted was the teachers talking directly to the President because they engage in a healthy dose of suppression and so people don’t get to bring their matters directly to the policymakers and as the president said, he is available to meet with anyone.”

BETTERMENT

During the consultation, the President outlined the government’s plans to assist those teachers who would have already acquired land, but cannot build due to limited funds.

“I can ask the CEO (Chief Education Officer) to check for all the teachers who would have had allocations made to them, but they do not have the bank loan, or the bank is giving them a hard time, and we will deal with that as a category,” the President said.

Meanwhile, teachers already in the process of building will receive assistance with materials, such as steel and cement, to subsidise their financing.

The government, he said, will engage the country’s banking institutions to facilitate the process.

Loans from $15 million, with an interest rate of 3.75%, will be accessible to teachers.

“Within two weeks, we will move to have this big-tent approach, where we will have the banks… We will get the list of teachers, we will tell you all that you have to walk with; we will get everything pre-approved, so when you come, you sign your loan off,” President Ali said.

Additionally, teachers will be provided with the option to access other support such as building plans.

Teachers from both the hinterland and coastland regions raised a plethora of issues, among them salary and allowance adjustments for teachers, better school infrastructure, the need for more qualified teachers, improved Internet access, better transportation for children, especially those living in the hinterland region, implementation of more innovative programmes, and overcrowding in several schools.

Responding to the teachers’ concerns, the President said: “We are going to complete the infrastructure audit of all the schools and all the education facilities, including the recreation facilities across the country, so we will have a gap analysis as to what has to be done, and prioritise where we are going to definitely address those issues.”

With regards to overcrowding, specifically, the president noted that the government will prioritise the extension of schools affected by overcrowding in the upcoming budget cycle.

Existing anomalies affecting minimum-wage teachers will be corrected in their salaries this month.

Meanwhile, some 2,300 new and qualified teachers will be entering the system soon, and will be dispatched across the country to satisfy the need for more trained teachers.

In the coming weeks, the government will develop a holistic approach to address all the needs of the country’s teachers.

“Now that I have a full understanding directly from you,” President Ali said, “I am in a better position to come up with a holistic approach as to how we will deal with the welfare of students and teachers together.”

Executive representatives from the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) and other government officials such as Education Minister Priya Manikchand, Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh, and the country’s Labour Minister, Joesph Hamilton were in attendance.