By Poloko Mokhele
The 2022/23 primary and high school students’ academic year might be in jeopardy as teachers mull a nationwide strike.
The disgruntled teachers accuse the ministry of education and training for failure to meet their demands.
Lesotho public school students have not enjoyed their studies since 2018, due to different factors including teachers’ strike which began in early 2018 and suspended in late March 2019.
Since 2020 to date, students have been attending classes on rotational basis due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Addressing a press briefing this week, Lesotho Association of Teachers (LAT), Lesotho Teachers Trade Union (LTTU) and Lesotho Schools Principals Association (LESPA) indicated that there are plans to launch a new strike, as they have approached the ministry of education and training on several occasions to fulfill all the agreements that were made in March 2019.
The associations and the government agreed to review teachers’ salary structures. They also agreed that the salary arrears would be paid in the second quarter of the 2019/2020 financial year.
LTTU president Mafokane Ramakhula said: “It has been close to four years since we signed an agreement with the government which entailed our demands, agreements and time frames when we expected everything to be fulfilled but we are disappointed to announce that most of them are still outstanding.”
He stated that they have no choice “but to implement clause 7(a) recommendation of the agreement which states that failure by the employer to act and abide by the agreement shall leave the teachers formations with no option but to resume the strike and this shall not be a bar for the said teachers formations to resort to courts of law for intervention.”
However, Ramakhula was quick to state that they have noted that the courts of law fail to resolve matters quicker due to the high backlog at the High Court They claimed that seeking intervention from the courts would be the last resort after the strike.
LAT secretary general, Letsatsi Ntsibolane said it had come to their attention that the only time that government attends to their demands is when they strike.
“It is very unfortunate that government only addresses teachers’ demands when we strike. I must also state that even the ministerial sub-committee which was tasked with handling our matters is no longer replying our letters, they are leaving us with no choice but to rally our troops (teachers) for a strike,” he contented.
Ntsibolane added that they are not going to give the ministry of education and training more time to address them after the press briefing “because in the agreement there were timeframes for when every demand will be finalised and all timeframes have passed.”
The minister of education and training, ‘Mamookho Phiri last week announced the Lesotho General Certificate for Secondary Education (LGCSE) 2021 results with the overall performance said to be highly poor with a ten percent pass rate decline.
Phiri indicated then that “new policies to improve the education system will be introduced to ensure that results are better this year.”
However, it remains to be seen how possible this will be, should the teachers go ahead with the planned strike.
