via Irate teachers demand Mugabe meeting 21/05/2014 NewZimbabwe
Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) is demanding audience with President Robert Mugabe to register its displeasure with current Education Minister Lazarus Dokora who has allegedly introduced tougher conditions for practising teachers.
The militant teachers group says Dokora has put in place plans to scrap teachers’ salaries during school holidays, install CCTV in classrooms as well as push schools’ sports to weekends.
“We want to meet President Mugabe and tell him what is going on and if we are snubbed, we will take the bull by the horns, definitely we will go on strike,” Majongwe said.
“President Mugabe appointed Minister Dokora and the successes that we are talking about, 34 years after independence, were because of Mugabe; but Dokora comes and before 365 days are over, he is already changing things.”
Majongwe accused ministry officials of instigating the installation of CCTV within Harare’s Queen Elizabeth and Gils High schools, where teachers now have to endure being watched the whole day.
The outspoken trade unionist said the system at the two schools, if not resisted, will soon be unrolled to the rest of the schools in Zimbabwe.
“If people think that headmasters can then spy on teachers and call people to say kuti this one cannot teach as what is happening paQueen Elizabeth, then we have a serious problem,” he said.
Majongwe further said there were plans by the ministry to stop salaries to all Zimbabwean teachers during holidays since they would not be at work as well as stop paying student teachers.
Majongwe said they were sourcing the information from sympathetic ministry officials while some of it has been communicated to schools through circulars.
Repeated efforts to seek comment with both Dokora and Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa were fruitless but a rival teachers group say the rumours were untrue.
“These are dreams. It’s is not true, we don’t know the source of the information while the government denies this and is equally surprised on the source of the information,” said Ndlovu.
ZIMTA is viewed more sympathetic to government while PTUZ, which is smaller in terms of membership, wants the confrontational way of dealing with government.
COMMENTS
Sifiso Ndlovu you are archaic and redundant, retrogressive!!!!!.Government schools in towns and cities are on a crusade to victimise MDC affiliated teachers.Evryday those principals get reports from student spies about how the teacher was dressed, was he not drunk, did he come early etc.Why cant the ZANU principals face the teachers rather than spy on them.Its sad that some people say dzefunde to everything from ZANU.Not paying teachers on holidays is just SILLY.kANA MATADZA JUST SHUT UP AND THROW IN THE TOWEL.Even Smith regime never treated teachers like this.Dokora, you grabbed a farm in Matepatepa , just go and farm.
Don’t pay teachers and the real struggle starts.What about soldiers? They must not be paid the whole year because they are not working.What are they doing?
Dokora is a very negative force in our education system. Why has he decided to take this confrontational approach with the teachers? It seems he has a long standing score that he wants to settle with the teachers. This has never happened before in the history of education in this country. Dokora is behaving like a little foolish boy who suddenly finds himself with so much power and he would want everyone to feel that he is in charge. When president mugabe appointed him as minister, i believe he did so with good intentions but little did he know that he was putting power into the hands of a fool, a fool who would destroy education in this country. We have many ministers who are working hard day in and day out to improve the lives of people in their ministries and the country as a whole. I have in mind ministers like prof j moyo and his deputy mr s mandiwanzira, mr w chidhakwa mr w mzembi dr parirenyatwa mr f nhema ms o muchinguri mr chinamasa and many others. But not this arrogant man. I think the president should rein him in before he does irreparable damage to the education system.
I am glad you have ministers working to improve your life. You must be special . I have been trying from the Smith regime right up to now to get an MP that represent my electorate to no avail.
I envy you. I suppose this is the only hiccup for you.
May the Lord continuously bless you with your politicians .
Amen
If this Chinamasa_Dokora attributed scheme is true then the truth of the matter is what these guys are proposing simply amounts ‘a wholesale retrenchment’ of all teachers currently under PS payroll; and then re-engaging them, or those who are willing, as part-timers.
This is the point teachers be made must be to comprehend, especially by their respective Trade Unions. So, in essence the government need to 1st undertake that retrenchment process – which if legally done entails negotiation, finalization and issuing of packages to the retrenched employees. Then recruitment new and former employees who may be willing to take up the part-time offer.
From a labour law point of view this is what should happen. I’m afraid, Unions may waste a lot of time talking about meeting Mugabe, Grace, blaaa, blaaa, …. forgetting put their situation and/or grievances into proper perspective and inform their membership accordingly. Many time I haven’t seen clear articulation of issues to members so that members make informed choices of the right course of action.
At law an employer can retrench work-force workers can not force the employer to keep them ’till death do them part’. But the key issue is transparency and legality of the whole process, so that fair retrenchment packages are paid up to the retrenches. My take is Union would rather called such kind of proposal what it is, i.e ‘retrenchment’ and push for a fair retrenchment package for their members. Becoz if the trio, Mugabe-Chinamasa-Dokora, have decided about it then stopping it may not be possible. We all know Mugabe & Chinamasa ndivana chandagwinyira. I can not imagine the nonentity Dokora guy is the rightful originator of the bizarre idea. The finger prints of the former two guyz are clearly all over – if it is serious at all.
Get me right, I don’t support the idea, it is stupid & bizarre. I’m just putting the idea into perspective for the benefit (in terms of understanding the overall implication of the Mugabe-Chinamasa-Dokora experimental project).
What I find strange is that Majongwe actually believes Mugabe cares.
If indeed students are being made to spy on their teachers that’s wrong. I am however not too sure why teachers would find the concept of CCTV in classrooms so abhorrent. Lets face ir, some teachers do plat truent. During my school days we had a teacher who would write difficult maths problems on the board and tell us to work on them then vanish for hours. Some of our teachers also liked indecently touching girls. We would have loved the protection of CCTV.
dokora and chombo are the worst idiots in mugabe s cabinet followed by mugabe himself. 3 misguided misiles
So the punishment is metted out to the ordinary people by placing tough conditions and for themselves (the top notch) its another condition – put their sticky fingers and steal from the coffers and just walk in and take over a business or a farm that does not belong to them