Teachers confront PNG’s Education Department

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Teachers confront PNG’s Education Department

PORT MORESBY: Teachers nationwide have fronted outside the Education Department headquarters in Port Moresby querying about their 2021 entitlements – two weeks from the start of the new school year.

Their complaints include unpaid salaries, allowances, benefits and leave fares.

The National reported their plight:

Teachers in strife

January 10, 2022The NationalMain Stories

Teachers outside the education office in Lae, Morobe, on Friday.

Teachers outside the education office in Lae, Morobe, on Friday.

By STAFF REPORTERS

TEACHERS travelling from other provinces have been crowding outside the Education Department headquarters in Port Moresby querying about their 2021 entitlements – two weeks from the start of the new school year.
Their complaints include unpaid salaries, allowances, benefits and leave fares.
Education Minister Jimmy Uguro said yesterday he was yet to be briefed about the teachers’ complaints and would comment later.
Hela teacher Timba Hiliwa said he had not received any pay for 11 fortnights and came over to the department headquarters to find out why.
“We are (now) struggling in the city and I hope that the education officials fast-track our queries so that we can go back to our provinces and teach,” he said.
Primary school teacher Joseph Igimabo arrived in Port Moresby from Lake Kutubu in Southern Highlands to find out about his allowance and is yet to get a response.
“I have been living with families which is a burden to them, trying to support me to sort out my queries,” he said.
Igimabo claimed that some teachers had even tried to bribe certain officials at the Fincorp Haus to fast-track their queries.
“Some asked us for money (K300 to K1,000) which we paid but they have not processed our queries yet,” he said.
Erick Yinaken from West Sepik who teaches at a rural school in the Tewaii-Siassi in Morobe, said he arrived in October to find out about his leave fares.
“I have been told by education officials that my queries are delayed due to the Covid-19 restrictions and that the Alesco system is down,” he said.
“Most of us have travelled from around the country to fix our leave fares, salaries and other queries. It is a real struggle for us in the city. Those off the payroll have to look for accommodation, bus fare and money to survive in the city.”
Hiliwa said education officials later allowed them into the office and attended to their queries.
“The officials allowed us in and instructed us to fill in forms and said they would attend to our queries,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Morobe education division paid out K10 million in leave fares last year, said programme adviser Keith Tangui.
He said there was an increase in leave applications.
“We were working on a K7million budget but due to these factors, our budget expanded,” Tangui said.
“Many of our female teachers are married to people who are not working, so the larger number of heads of family status has in turn increased.”
Wau Primary School head teacher Leo Yakura thanked the Morobe administration for ensuring that leave fares were paid to all teachers.
Yakura, originally from East Sepik and a teacher for more than 20 years, said this was the biggest amount compared to previous years.

Negative side of free education

January 10, 2022The NationalMain Stories

By YVONNE KAMBIBEL
FREE education may be a big relief for parents but not for schools, says a school principal.
Milne Bay’s Cameron Secondary School principal Shirley Apaio said “free education does not really work for us”.
“It only means increased enrolment of students, overcrowding in classrooms and more outstanding payments for schools,” she said.
Apaio said free education was not effective because the Government failed to pay all fees as promised to schools before the close of an academic year.
She said last year, her school was supposed to receive K700,000 as part of the tuition fee-free policy.
“But we received only K300,000 and are yet to receive the balance,” Apaio said.
“We had to close up for the Christmas holidays a week before the scheduled closing date due to a shortage of funds.”
On project fees, Apaio said parents agreed at the start of the academic year to pay a project fee of K100 per student.
But she said this did not happen.
When the school asked the parents to pay the fees, they said the school fees had already been paid by the Government.
She said Cameron Secondary has an annual enrolment of close to 1,000 students.
“Due to this free education, there will definitely be an increase in enrolment for this academic year,” Apaio said.
“Right now, the school has outstanding payments from last year and there are inadequate funds to start another academic year.”
East Sepik’s Mercy Secondary School Yarapos principal Alexander Marcus was also concerned about the inconsistent payment of fees by the Government.
Marcus said they had to pay not only learning and teaching resources but also electricity and water bills, food at the student mess, school transport and security.
“When the government of the day makes a commitment every year to assist schools with funding but continues to fail on its part to fully honour that commitment, schools suffer the consequences,” he said.