Teachers deserve every cent of proposed figure – Opposition MP

Salary increases

Opposition Member of Parliament, Juan Edghill was on Saturday applauded by teachers as he said they deserve every cent of the increase being proposed. His statement was made on the lawns of the Caricom General Insurance Company in Ruimzeigt, West Coast Demerara, during a backpack distribution exercise.

“I believe our teachers need every cent that they can get to make their lives better. I will add (to) that sentence, I believe our teachers are deserving,” he said.
The MP, whose first job was a teacher, said he is cognisant of the fact that teachers are some of the hardest workers and the parents of all the children they teach. “Teachers are a very special kind or a special breed. Everybody’s children are there children.”
Further, Edghill pointed out, “I would want to ask all of Guyana even when we are having an impending crisis, if I have to give solidarity anywhere, it would be solidarity with the teachers of Guyana because they deserve it.”
Edghill’s statement comes at a time where over 7000 teachers are slated to go on strike on Monday.
On Friday last, the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) did not attend the conciliation talks between the Social Cohesion Ministry’s Department of Labour, and the Education Ministry since they received a late invitation.
GTU President Mark Lyte has since signalled that the teachers’ strike is on as they continue to lobby for their increase in wages of 40 per cent on the 2015 salary, and five per cent with each year that came after until 2020.
Meanwhile, the 500 school bags, worth over $1.5 million, were handed over to children from nine different schools by the Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) on behalf of the Private Sector Association (PSA).
Edghill praised the Association for its tremendous effort and said it is evident that the region’s PSA is not just living for themselves but for others.
“Don’t just take it for granted what is happening here this afternoon (Saturday) because this is not just about getting a bag or a bag pack to go to school. This is about giving our children hope,” the MP encouraged. As such, he urged the recipients to be inspired and to take advantage of what is being given to them.
Meanwhile, President of the region’s PSA, Radesh Rameshwar, shared that he believes education is the greatest asset.
“The Association recognises the importance of education for we all know that the greatest asset that could be given to a child is education and not a Nike boots or a LA gear shoe or sneakers or whatever it is… education is the only legal way out of poverty and by making these contributions today the Region Three Private Sector Association is laying the foundation for the reduction of poverty in Region Three,” Rameshwar stated.
The nine schools which benefited from backpacks were Patentia Primary, Upper and Lower Bonasika, Kawal Primary, Vive La Force Primary, Wales Primary, Parika Back Primary, Vreed-en-Hoop Primary, Den Amstel Primary and Wakenaam Secondary.
The Region Three PSA was founded in 2016 and has since funded several projects, including the rehabilitation of the Bonasika Computer Lab, where for the first time children have access to the Internet.