By Bida Elly David
The National Ministry of General Education and Instructions has faulted the apprehended teachers who formerly protested over their unpaid accumulated arrears in Rumbek and distanced themselves from the case terming the teachers as criminals.
Recently, a group of teachers in Rumbek, Lakes State were reportedly apprehended after demonstrating over their accumulated dues.
They said the Ministry released an amount of money which contradicted the new salary scale that defined the increase of their salaries by one hundred percent (100%). After series of consultations, the State Minister of Education denied the claims that teachers in the State were apprehended and detained.
This development arose following the arrest of more than 14 teachers in Rumbek of Lakes State earlier in June.
Speaking to the press, Martin Tako, the deputy Minister of General education and instructions reiterated that the six apprehended and detained teachers by the security personnel were found not to be among the government employed staff whether being at the national or state level.
“We have already solved the issue concerning the apprehended teachers in Lakes state after the National Minister of Education Awut Deng Acuil paid a visit personally to figure out the problem. It was true that teachers were arrested but after investigation, the teachers with their names in the government list were released but the rest who claimed to have been teachers were kept and detained since they bore no names in the national Ministry. The six people who claimed to be among the official teachers were neither employed with the State nor the national Ministry of General Education and Instructions” Tako explained.
Furthermore, he said that the real teachers protested to claim their rights in a complicated manner although they were released through the governor but others were criminals who focused to underestimate the reputation of the government.
“The real teachers indeed demanded their rights through strike and indeed the governor intervened and released them but the rest who claimed among them were true criminals,” he said.
He added that the six among others who claimed to have been teachers would face further investigations.