Teachers demand vaccines, want Masisi promises delivered
Threaten to boycott classes; death toll reaches 100
BAKANG TIRO
editors@thepatriot.co.bw
Knives are out for President Mokgweetsi Masisi and Minister of Basic Education (MoBE) Fidelis Molao, with teacher trade unions demanding that teachers be vaccinated immediately, accusing the due of failing the teaching fraternity as Covid-19 death toll soars.
Aggrieved Botswana Sectors of Educators Trade Union (BOSETU) and Botswana Teachers Union (BTU) have threatened to snub classes when schools re-open on August 17, 2021. In an interview on Friday, BOSETU vice president Mogomotsi Motshegwa said teachers are not safe at all. He noted that they will never fall for the trap of rhetoric promises that have been made by Masisi and Molao, that teachers will be prioritized for vaccines but to no avail.
“Masisi publicly declared that teachers will be vaccinated during teacher’s day and the minister also said that many times. The president further promised us vaccine in two or three meetings that we had with him. We are saddened by how the teachers are killed by Covid-19,” he stated.
In addition, the outspoken Motshegwa said the teacher trade unions have taken a political stand that will result in the teachers not going back to schools while they are not fully vaccinated. He indicated that it is upon government to ensure that the 38 000 vaccines of AstraZeneca that arrived today (Sunday) are prioritized in a strategic manner that could see teachers benefiting.
But he said the AstraZeneca jabs, it’s all upon the government to see how it prioritizes a rollout. “Our campaign of no vaccine, no classes we are serious about it. The Covid-19 deaths situation on the ground in relation to the teachers should speak volume to the government. There is no guarantee that schools could be safe for a reopening whilst teachers continues to succumb and get infected on daily basis. Government must issue vaccine based on practicality of situation,” he warned.
Furthermore, Motshegwa stated that the unions have written to minister Molao for a meeting but to no avail so to discuss the issues affecting teachers with minister said to be not available.
BOSETU’s bone of contention according to Motshegwa is that teachers should be prioritized for vaccination because the schools houses about 1500 population thus turning them to be unsafe.
No teaching
Meanwhile, BTU Secretary General Agang Habana that teachers are determined not to return to unsafe school environment before they get jabs urging government to keep promises it has made.
Habana said by Friday, the teacher’s death toll from the Covid-19 pandemic reached the100 mark.
“We have reached an agreement with government that we would be prioritized when vaccines arrive but it never been the case when first batches of vaccines arrived. We are still demanding that we be prioritized on the latest AstraZeneca doses as per promises made when,” he added.
He went on to say that what is worrying is that the government never consulted the teachers as why they were no longer prioritized to be in line for the vaccination despite the agreements made.
Regarding their intention to not go back schools, Habana stressed that they are serious about that.
He added that they are depending on their members from BTU and BOSETU to rally behind them.
The ministry of basic education did not respond enquiries sent to them at time of going to print.
The reluctance by government to close down schools in second term, at a time when the local transmission in cases and deaths surged sparked lot of criticism coming from unions to the government.
That being the case, the teachers trade unions say that the now severe situation of the deaths among teachers could have been avoided should have government noted the calls to close schools fast.
President Masisi earlier on June during the commemoration of National Teachers Day said the teachers will be vaccinated as priority acknowledging the threat they face amid Covid-19 storm.
A teacher himself by profession, Masisi said at a time that he recognizes the enormous pressure that the teachers in Botswana are operating under during this unprecedented era of Coronavirus.