13 February 2022
Prosperity Sikhosana
OPINION
The President of the country Emmerson Mnangagwa left for Mozambique on a one-day working visit leaving the education sector in disarray.
While Mnangagwa was headed to the Mozambican capital his Minister of Primary and Secondary Education suspended incapacitated teachers who failed to report for duty when schools opened on the 7th of this month.
The teachers continue to point to an inadequate inflation ravaged salary as the reason for failure to go back to class.
The visit by Mnangagwa to the eastern neighbouring country is by invitation from his Mozambican counterpart, President Filipe Nyusi to discuss issues concerning economic, political, social and cultural relations between the two countries.
While the reason for the visit by our country’s president is noble, as it touched, in part, on the welfare of two countries’ economies, such talks should have began at home.
The President, before he left, should have instructed his two Ministers of Finance and Education to revisit the teachers’ grievances so as to address the turmoil that has caused the achelles heels in the education sector and the civil service as a whole.
The president’s visit is said to be an opportunity to discuss bilateral, continental, global issues and in turn reaffirm commitments to closely cooperate on issues affecting Mozambique and the region, particularly security issues.
Upon his arrival, president Mnangagwa is said to have presented Cyclone Idai relief aid to Mozambican victims.
Mr. President, charity begins at home.
The relief you gave for those who were affected by Cyclone Idai is plausible and noble, but shouldn’t a similar gesture be offered to the government workers who are wallowing in near poverty because of inadequacy of their salaries at home.
The relief the president handed over in Mozambique could have been relief to the government employees and their families had it been handed to the financially struggling civil service.
It is no secret that the Zimbabwean economy is headed southwards. It is no secret that the Zimbabwean dollar is becoming useless each passing day. It is no secret that prices of commodities do not last more than a week on the shelves.
As such the President should have instructed the Minister of Finance, who uniletarally imposed a rejected salary increment across the divide of the civil service. The president should have instructed Prof. Mthuli Ncube, the finance minister, to at least fiddle with his figures and try to satisfy the government employees with what they used to earn pre 2018.
This is what the teachers are clamouring for. Teachers want their salaries restored to US$540.
In Mozambique, the president expressed the desire to address the activities of terrorists in some parts of that country, by providing assistance to those in need, particularly those displaced by the activities.
Not only will Zimbabwe assist in food security through SADC, but also intends to train and capacitate the Mozambican Defence Forces.
At home, we have a multitude of civil servants, teachers, the police force, soldiers and line ministry workers who have been displaced socially and economically through poverty.
These need the president’s immediate assistance.
They need a decent salary so that they can lead a normal life.
In the recent past, acts of terrorism in the form of robberies had been perpetrated by current and former armed forces members including the police.
All this points to an inadequate remuneration.
The job action by the teachers has been taken light by the head of government. Instead of addressing the ‘elephant in the room’ Mnangagwa’s Minister decides to suspend the teachers for three months without pay.
This action has been said to be legally improper, but still it has its ramifications.
Teachers have dug in deep and are not accepting the piecemeal offer by Prof. Mthuli Ncube.
In the meantime, school children continue to suffer through denied learning time.
The mask that the president is ever wearing is a constant reminder that our children lost too much time as the corona virus induced lockdowns forced schools to close.
There has been a respite as the pandemic has subsided, another salary pandemic is now affecting school children.
The journey Zimbabwe seeks to take, that of humanitarian activities is likely to cost millions of dollars.
If the country can afford to dish out humanitarian aid to another country, why is the same government failing to pay its own people adequately.
For instance, if the president is going to be distributing food parcels and clothing materials for Mozambican victims of Cyclone Idai and other countries that will seek assistance over the coming years, why not use the same funds to address the “elephant in the room” for the Zimbabweans civil service.
Hoping that the visit by the president was productive, there is still need to have some problems solved internally before reaching out to help other nations.
Zim GBC News
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