By Terrence Mawawa, Harare| Government “has squandered $50 million on brand new vehicles for top shefs while teachers wallow in poverty” with no bonuses and under the burden of delayed salaries. The Zimbabwe Teachers Association(ZIMTA) will tomorrow Friday stage countrywide protests against the government’s failure to pay teachers’ bonuses.
In a circular to its members dated January 10 2016 ZIMTA said the demonstration was a result of government’s lack of commitment towards paying civil servants’ bonuses.
The government has been dithering on the payment of bonuses forcing many civil servants to resort to moneylenders to get loans thereby accruing huge debts.
“As previously directed the expression of the bonus saga will be made by the association and will be organised as follows-Participation:A total of up to 500 participants must attend this march and be drawn from from the following ranks-National members and or at least 15 members of the provincial executive … Provinces are requested to transport their participants to arrive on time for the march on 15 January at least an hour before the commencement of the march,”reads part of the letter.
The broke government is likely to face more job actions with all civil servants sectors unhappy with the non-payment of bonuses.
The protests will be staged in and out of Harare as well as across the association’s provincial centres as teachers press government to address the non-payment of bonuses.
Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa is under pressure to resolve the matter and the government has been making empty promises to that effect since last year.
The demonstration is likely to attract mass attendances with teachers across the country increasingly agitated by the failure to get bonuses.