Parents, guardians wants govt intervention over teachers strike

Parents and guardians wants swift government intervention to avert another strike in public schools.

This follows the decision by the Teachers Union of Malawi (TUM) to give a seven day notice for a strike following the government decision to make a u-turn on teachers covid-19 risk allowances payment promise.

TUM is threatening to resume its strike which was suspended two weeks ago following the decision by the Presidential Taskforce on Covid-19 to reject their demand for a three-month once off payment for PPE’s in form of cash-costed packages.

The union further warns that once the stay-away resumes, it shall only be called off after all the public striking teachers and lecturers have been provided with the said packages.

Reacting to the development, parents and guardian of public school pupils are expressing concern with the failure by all stakeholders to resolve the matter.

Some are blaming the government for earlier including the teachers on the list of the essential workers that are provided with Covid 19 risk allowances.

Meanwhile, Co-Chairperson of the Presidential Taskforce on Covid-19 Wilfred Chalamira Nkhoma emphasizes that since the procurement of materials for addressing Covid-19 response are managed through standard government procurement and financial accountability procedures, the taskforce has no power to support the provision of cash-costed packages for the teachers.