THE issue of teachers not getting paid on time did not mean the Education Ministry did not have the money, Education Minister Rosy Akbar said.
She said when such issues crop up, it simply meant there were issues with the teachers’ contracts.
She made the statement after Opposition Whip Lynda Tabuya told Parliament she was recently informed that teachers and some civil servants were not getting paid on time.
Ms Tabuya said as a Opposition spokeswoman on Labour, she was inundated with disheartening reports about the effects of Government running out of money.
“A delay of a single day for us may be nothing, but those receiving wages can be very stressful on a family living from paycheck to paycheck,” Ms Tabuya said.
“I have been informed of situations where interest rates have drastically increased with money lenders and credit institutions, leading to extreme cases where hire purchased household items are repossessed.
“In some credit institutions, there are public notices displayed that loans will not be given to civil servants because they are unreliable debtors, so how do we, as leaders of our nation in Parliament, solve this problem? It is simple, the Government should resign.”
In her response, Ms Akbar said teachers were the backbone of the Education Ministry.
“Sometimes we receive contracts late, sometimes the contracts are given out late and I stand to apologise for any inconvenience that may be caused to these teachers,” Ms Akbar said.
“In my one year of experience in this ministry, we have been able to identify a lot of issues and we are rectifying that and I can assure them that come 2020 we will be better prepared to serve our teachers and our schools. I can assure them on that.”
Ms Akbar also extended her gratitude to all teachers, describing them as selfless members of the society who rose every day to inspire greatness in Fijian children.
