Tag Archives: Madalitso Njolomole

Education, Malawi

Malawi teachers body again gives Chakwera seven days over unfulfilled Covid-19 risk allowance demands

Maravi Post Reporter
TUM and government signed pact

By Thandie Chadzandiyani

LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-Teachers Union of Malawi (TUM) has again given President Lazarus Chakwera’s Tonse government seven days to meet Covid-19 risk allowance demands.

The demands comes after three weeks public secondary and primary schools teachers’ national wide strike was called off pending mutual talks.

Since last year, TUM has been demanding the Covid-19 risk allowances, hence Teachers Union of Malawi has expressed concern over government’s “deafening” silence on their efforts to resolve issues related to demands on Covid-19 risk allowances.

TUM and government signed a consent order on April 12 this year for the teachers to resume work and have a court processed government initiated postponed pending negotiations.

Three weeks after the order, government is yet to initiate contact with TUM despite numerous reminders from the teachers who now feel short-changed, and want to decide on the next course of action.

Meanwhile, an education activist and Chancellor College Academic Staff Union (Ccasu) have decried government’s underhand  tactics on the matter.

TUM president Willy Malimba in an interview said the union is also surprised that even the Civil Servants Trade Union (CSTU), which is supposed to help with the negotiations, has remained quiet on the matter.

“It’s been 15 days since the consent order and we just want to give them 21 days. It’s surprising what the government is doing on the matter. So, we are giving the CSTU and government just one week to monitor what they will do and we take another action” Malimba said.

“We are surprised with what kind of negotiation skills that government is employing because it all seems that things are just deliberately put on a stop button. But we will wait for just this one week and we will let you know the next course of action.”

Yet when contacted for comment on Monday, May 3, 2021, CSTU secretary general Madalitso Njolomole said TUM was better-placed to speak on the matter, adding, “CSTU is not a reconciliator in the negotiations.”

Acting Principal Secretary for Education Raphael Agabu said he is on leave, and could not comment on the matter, insisting, “If I am on leave, I cannot be speaking on official matters.”

Meanwhile, Civil Society Education Coalition (CSEC) Eexecutive director Benedicto Kondowe has decried the situation, saying government was supposed to lead the discussion, but it has decided to abdicate responsibility.

“The dilemma we may find ourselves in is that the stay-away might resume during the next term in June, which might be too damaging. If not, TUM might move the Labour Commissioner for reconciliation, because it will be deemed at law that settlement has failed”, explained Kondowe.

Malawi

Police crashes with CSTU members at Capital Hill; members called to meet with Chief Secretary

Maravi Post correspondent

Police crashes with CSTU members at Capital Hill; members called to meet with Chief Secretary

There was tension on Tuesday between police and members of the Civil Service Trade Union (CSTU), at Capital Hill in Lilongwe over the meeting organized by the CSTU.

The meeting was aimed at eliciting the views of CSTU members over Government decision to raise their salaries by ten percent in the 2017-2018 national budget.

After being informed of the development, police mounted a checkpoint at the entrance gate of Capital Hill with the aim of blocking the CSTU members who came to attend the meeting.

There was another group of heavily armed police inside the gate, preparing to disperse the CSTU members and prevent them from holding their meeting.

In the process of holding the meeting, police arrested two CSTU members, who were mobilizing their friends to go to the meeting at the car park of Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development.

The two are Jones Kuntumanji and Jonas Savimbi, who were apprehended by at least 20 police, before they started to call the people to the meeting.

This angered CSTU members, who demanded the release of their colleagues, and threatened they would not leave the place.

CSTU General Secretary Madalitso Njolomole, accused the police of intimidating their members.

After the CSTU leadership finished their emergency meeting with the Chief Secretary to the Government Lloyd Muhara, CSTU President Servace Sakala held discussions with police to release the CSTU member. This however took almost an hour before police released the CSTU members.

The law enforcers released the two CSTU members only after notating that other CSTU members to leave the premise until their colleagues were released.

Malawi police national spokesperson James Kadadzera, however refused to comment on the matter, and said he did not know anything about the incidents on Capital Hill.

On the issue concerning the ten percent salary increment, the CSTU President said the Union does not accept the meager increase which the minister said would be given on merit.

He therefore said CSTU leadership will on Thursday meet with Government to further negotiate the matter.

The CSTU members threatened to start a country-wide strike on Monday, if the Government fails to honour their request byFriday.