By Ralph Sesay
Voice of Teachers has, in a press release dated 21st March, 2019, blasted the Deputy Director of Education for the Rural Area, Mr. H.B. Kargbo for what they have referred to as harassment and intimidation of their Western Area Rural Coordinator, Mr. Saa Mockaimakoe Famanda.
The splinter teacher group has noted that their concern was drawn to an incidence on the 19th March, 2019, in which the Deputy Education Director, Mr. Kargbo, has instructed the Principal of Peninsulah Secondary School, Mr Alfred Turay, to make a formal report of incitement of teachers and pupils against Mr. Saa Famanda at the Waterloo Police Station.
The incident, they continued, later led to the Police arresting Mr. Famanda, who was briefly detained at the Criminal Investigations Department, Waterloo and later released on bail on the condition that he reports daily at the Police station pending investigation.
Mr. Famanda told the nightwatch that he was merely cascading an order from the national office of Voice of Teachers pertaining to a planned sit-down strike across all schools in the country.
“As Coordinator for the rural area I had a responsibility to inform the membership of the Voice of Teachers and bring to speed as what is happening with regards our pursuit for improved welfare conditions for teachers,” Mr. Amanda stated.
The Western Rural Coordinator noted that he felt intimidated by the Deputy Director of Education, who has ordered his arrest. He noted that he was merely fighting a genuine cause involving thousands of teachers against the backdrop that the umbrella body, SLTU, has failed to advocate for better conditions of service for teachers.
He praised the professionalism of the Police at Waterloo, who, he noted, had failed to follow illegal instructions to get him detained.
The Deputy Director of Education, Mr. H.B. Kargbo, in responding, noted that he has indeed instructed the Principal of Peninsular Secondary School to make a formal report of incitement against Mr. Famanda.
He continued that this was after he got a call that the principal of the Peninsular Secondary School was inciting teachers as well as pupils not to come to school.
Mr. Kargbo told the nightwatch that the Ministry of Education does not recognize the Voice of Teachers as representing teachers in the country and that Mr. Famanda had failed to follow processes leading to calling a strike action in government and government assisted schools across the country.
He noted that the Voice of Teachers is an illegal group and that the only recognized body for advocating on behalf of teachers is the SLTU.
Many teachers, who later spoke to this medium, including other educational stakeholders in the Districts, have failed to use his vast managerial skills to deal with the issues.
He was criticized for bringing the Police into a matter which was purely under his domain to have handled amicably. Similar situations have been handled by other Education Directors across the country, leading to peace and the furtherance of the Free Quality Education, one senior teacher opined.
The Voice of Teachers, no matter what one may say, has remained a formidable group that almost succeeded in paralyzing the Free and Quality Education some few months ago, and Government, cognizant of this, has been engaging them across the country with a view to reaching a consensus. More and more teachers are gaining confidence in the sprinter group’s resolve and commitment to protect the welfare of teachers.
Government at the moment is still yet to respond to a mouth watering package presented to them by the SLTU as a blueprint for improved conditions of service.