Sierra Leone Teachers on Strike as They Rubbish Bio’s 2018 ‘Free Quality Education’ Flagship
By Abu Shaw
The Sierra Leone teachers, the most disrespected professionals in the country today, have blasted President Maada Bio’s hopeless SLPP regime.
Thousands of teachers are presently up in arms nationwide against the SLPP government of President Bio who has clearly undermined his own much-publicised ‘Free Quality Education’ programme. The protesting teachers are fighting to achieve better services for themselves and their families among other things which the ruling government has ignored since 2018 when they came to power. The Sierra Leone Teachers Union SLTU, the pressure group responsible to cater to the affairs of the teachers, has unfortunately abandoned its responsibility by ignoring the plights of its poverty-stricken members. SLTU has become another stooge in the government’s pockets. Today, teachers are not receiving their monthly salaries punctually, and worse, teachers are not getting allowances, anything. Teachers are struggling so much under President Bio’s watch that they work for two to three months today before being paid. (Photo: Dr David Moinina Sengeh is the worst Minister of Basic Education in Sierra Leone’s history).
Reports say qualified teachers earn around Le1,000,000 Leones (£70) every month. The majority of teachers receive around Le300,000 Leones pittance. Very few teachers earn more! Sierra Leone teachers are suffering beyond belief. No wonder, a Sierra Leone woman recently released audio on social media in which she ridiculed the suffering teachers by vowing never to associate with them in the future because of their poverty-stricken conditions. She noted that she would make sure her children never become teachers and also never marry a teacher. The woman, whose father is incidentally a former teacher and her husband a teacher at the moment, made clear that teachers are the worst paid and most disrespected in Sierra Leone. “Teachers are always grumbling. And the conditions of teachers have become worse under this regime. Most teachers cannot even take care of their homes because of the negative attitude of the SLPP Education Ministry towards them,” the woman said.
Yesterday Monday, April 25, 2022, was a No School Day, a day that was put aside for all pupils and students to stay at home because of the government’s reluctance to pay the disgruntled teachers. And the sit-down strike by the teachers is still going on. This latest ongoing protest is organised by the Teachers Solidarity Movement TSM. They have called on all its members to stay at home until the SLPP government comes to its senses. Reports say many pupils did not go to school yesterday as instructed by the TSM. Sources say even in the SLPP government strongholds of the southeast, teachers have stayed at home in solidarity. What is happening in Sierra Leone today is a disgrace to President Bio’s ‘Free Quality Education’ flagship agenda that was trumpeted in the SLPP manifesto during the 2018 presidential elections campaigns. Now, Sierra Leoneans know that it was just a con game by the SLPP party to fool the international community about promoting education in the country. (Photo: The deceitful President Bio).
The ‘Free Quality Education’ slogan is a deception adopted by President Bio’s campaigners. “Where is the quality education when we the teachers are going on months without our salaries? For argument’s sake, let’s say there is a ‘Free Education’ as promised by the SLPP party, but there is frankly no ‘Quality’ in the educational system today under this government,” a Head Teacher from Freetown stressed. The protesting teachers are demanding better conditions including rents allowances and medical facilities. A protesting teacher of 10 years of experience puts it more succinctly. He warned the SLPP government: “We want those without Pin Codes to be incorporated into the salary structure among others. We do not want more than one million Leones rent allowance a month. We want to live and have an improvement in our livelihoods. Promotion and salary increment of teachers must be looked into. The government should realise that the pen is mightier than the sword. If these demands are not met, we will not go to school.” More details on this issue are as follows –
Bio Trades on Free Quality Education Leaving Teachers’ Welfare in the Gutters
By a Concerned Citizen
This is what the under-mentioned institution promised to deliver as highlighted in the SLPP new direction manifesto. The fundamental objective of the Wages and Compensation Commission is to ensure that the public sector pay and incentive system is not only able to attract and retain the requisite skills but that it is also applied consistently and sustainably so that public sector pay fairly reflects the work that Public or Civil servants perform. The free quality education that the Bio-led regime campaigned on is in complete variance with what is happening on the ground. But rather trading successfully on the heads of professional teachers in the Republic of Sierra Leone. The education sector is not reporting on donor-funded projects and the education trust fund. They prefer using people’s fathers and mothers after retirement there is nothing to show for their outstanding stewardship. (Photo: Teachers were disgraced for corrupt practices by the SLPP Anti-Corruption Commission ACC. But today, the SLPP government has proven to be the most fraudulent government in living memory).
In addition, teachers are languishing in the classrooms because they have been neglected and disrespected by the SLPP government. To an extent, their conditions of service are nothing good to write home about compared to what Chief Justice Desmond Babatunde Edwards is clocking as rent allowance every year. The highest annual take-home for teachers in Sierra Leone is below Thirteen Million Leone (Le 13,000,000) equivalent to a little over $ 1,000. However, salary disparity among civil servants is a strong problem currently affecting the fabric of our nation’s growth. The new direction manifesto indicated that they will provide huge privileges for teachers e.g. “build staff quarters and embark on a long-term housing scheme for teachers” but they have not been able to translate their policies into action, which is total deceit. The Sierra Leone Teachers Union is doing nothing to advocate and negotiate for better conditions of service, but politics has clouded the institution. Teachers must seat at home until a fruitful decision is reached. Teachers deserve a better life!
Teachers Urge SLPP Govt to Give Them a Better Pay
By a press release
We are calling the attention of the government that, this time, we deserve better quality pay like any other citizens in this country. We are expecting the teachers’ salaries to be increased by the following indications below.
Teachers Certificate – 3,500,000
Higher Teachers Certificates – 3,800,000
BSc Education – 4,500,000
Masters – 5,500,000
Without these conditions, no school – The salaries and allowances of politicians, Judges, and all other civil servants must be reduced to enable our salary increment with immediate effect. Without doing so, we say NO SCHOOL. TEACHERS, unite this time.
