-President Ali asserts; says meetings with MoE must continue unhindered and in good faith

PRESIDENT, Dr Irfaan Ali has cautioned teachers not to be “politically bullied” by detractors of development and must instead understand that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government stands fully committed to bettering the lives of all Guyanese.

During a live address to the nation on his Facebook page on Saturday, Dr Ali said: “We are one with our teachers. We will consistently work for the best possible benefit to our teachers, but we cannot be bullied. We cannot be politically bullied.”

The President also disclosed that two weeks after the PPP/C government assumed office to January 31, 2024, there have been more than 25 meetings with the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU).

He further added: “Separate and apart from this, as President, I personally engage with teachers directly from every single region of this country.”

Moreover, in these meetings with the union, 30 out of their 41 requests were fulfilled, according to him.

Also, apart from the 30 requests, 28 additional non-requested benefits were implemented by the Government of Guyana and Ministry of Education (MoE).

“If we are to be a democratic society, a law-abiding society, a society that stands on the pillar of justice, a society that stands on the pillar of fairness and honesty, then we have to be faithful to the institutions of our society,” the Head-of-State told the nation.

He further said that the GTU orchestrated a strike before the next scheduled meeting between them and the MoE.

“A process was underway; a system was underway and the authority that is vested with determining the actions of the teachers, that is the Chief Labour Officer, made it pellucidly clear [that the] actions advanced by the teachers were in breach of the procedure that was in place…” he stated.

Not allowing the detractors of development to advance their narrative, the President said that the government has been making the point constantly that the planned meetings must be allowed to continue and that is where the welfare of teachers will continue to be discussed.

RETURN TO THE PROCESS

He then went on to say: “But those who are aligned with the leadership of the GTU allow political directives to supersede the natural course of things; allow political directives to influence their behaviour. Notwithstanding that, the Ministry of Education has consistently made it clear that the union should have the teachers return to work and proceed back to the meetings that were planned and procedures that were planned.”

He further stated: “There is a system, there was an ongoing process. You cannot return to that process under duress.”

Moreover, the President stressed that if the GTU is serious, then they will walk back their “missteps and have the teachers back in school and proceed back to the process.”

Dr Ali further remarked: “This government is working towards the best possible outcome for every citizen, our pensioners, our children, our farmers, our public servants, our teachers, our sugar industry workers, our bauxite workers.

“We are working on a comprehensive, holistic mechanism through which every single worker, every single family will have the best possible life in this country.”

While underscoring that the PPP government is working on an agenda to bridge Guyana and remove the divide and push the nation upward and forward under the umbrella of one Guyana, President Ali said: “That is the only ambition of this government. That is the only ambition of this President. And I stand and remain faithfully committed to the prosperity to the people.”

On Thursday, the Government of Guyana made it abundantly clear that the MoE has had a long and settled practice of meeting with the GTU on an almost monthly basis, since August 11, 2020.

At these meetings, multiple issues relating to the welfare of teachers and the better and more efficient administration of the education sector have been addressed. These include both salaries and non-salary issues and benefits.

Apart from these engagements, the MoE has implemented another set of measures and decisions for the benefit of teachers. These measures were unsolicited by the union, and executed upon the government’s initiative over the past four years.

The last of these engagements between the ministry and the GTU took place on January 31, 2024. That meeting was cordial, courteous and constructive. At the meeting, at least five salary-related issues that were on the agenda were addressed.

The meeting was adjourned to February 21, 2024, for the parties to continue to engage on those and other issues. At the end of the meeting, there was no evidence whatsoever of any rancour, discord or disagreement between the parties.

As a result, the government was shocked when the union, a few days after, announced its intention to resort to strike action.

“The government wishes to emphasise that at all times, it was and remains ready and prepared to resume those engagements.

“While the government does not think that judicial intervention was necessary, having regard to the established industrial [relations] practices referred to above, the government will participate in the process, with the firm expectation that it will put teachers back into the classrooms, as the government’s paramount concern always is, and will remain, in the best interest and welfare of the nation’s students,” a statement released on Friday said.