By: Ibrahim Thoronka (Cavani)
Assessing the percentage at which community teachers are fleeing the classrooms in search of greener pastures at Marampa Mines and other subcontractor companies, the Community Development Committee (CDC), through the teacher's representative, Mr. Alimamy Foday Kamara (Mboma), tender a project proposal to the steering committee to help boost community teachers with monthly stipends to keep them in the classroom.
This initiative was marvelous and was highly appreciated by all the committee members. Six senior schools were identified for a start, i.e., Murialdo, A.D Wurie, Stefani, Our Lady of Guadalupe, Marampa Islamic, and A.U Bah. Six community teachers per school were targeted to receive five hundred leones (Nle 500.00) monthly for a start. Unfortunately, the project implementation falls into the hands of some school heads who need more milk of human kindness. Thirty-six thousand new Leones (Nle 36,000.00) were given to each school, making the total sum of two hundred and sixteen thousand new leones (Nle 216,000.00) to be paid for the whole calendar year. This, according to the accountant of CDC, Mr. Dawoh, was handed to school heads by Mr. Amid Kabba, a representative from the community relations and development department of Marampa Mines Limited, in the form of cheques.
The fact stands crystal clear that the majority of community teachers still need help to make ends meet as the money is not serving the intended purpose. The system is forcing them to leave the classroom in search of better lives. Some of these school heads claim they have been lending money from extra sources to pay community teachers, and now that these funds are available from the CDC, they will use them to pay back their old debts. Does it mean, in actuality, the subsidies paid to schools by the Sierra Leone government are of no use? On the other hand, some schools that benefited from the two hundred and six thousand new Leones (Nle 216,000.00) are still collecting the sum of fifty Leones (Nle 50) from the pupils for gate maintenance and payment of community teachers. What a wicked world.
Speaking to this medium, a community teacher was asked why he left the classrooms. He responded, " I left because the system doesn't create a room for us to stay. Imagine all the years spent waiting for PIN codes to no avail. We are yet to get one, and now that the CDC, through the teacher's representative, is trying to help boost community teachers, the whole process ends in the wrong hands. My boss announced at the assembly that the CDC had given funds to community teachers. To my greatest dismay, when the cheque was cashed out, the principal told us that the school lacked library facilities and, as such, the money would be used to develop it. Guess what, I see no hope for teachers without pin codes in the classroom as far as Marampa Chiefdom is concerned. So why should I waste my time and energy beating a dead horse when the system has failed to create space for us to survive?
According to another school of thought, if the Community Teachers in Marampa are facing more challenges, this might be due to the poor implementation of the project. The Community Development Committee is expected to collect all the community teachers in the six schools and pay them through the CDC office or their accounts. A system of such payment should have been a better remedy to help save the predicament of the community teachers.
Abubakarr Kamara, the son of a poor hawker, was also a victim. According to him, the school administration is still quashing them to pay the sum of fifty Leones. " I see no reason why the CDC should remove such a huge amount from the community development fund and give it to heads of schools for community teachers. It makes no point. Apart from other school charges, we used to pay fifty Leones (Nle 50) for community teachers, and to date, we are paying the same, so what is the difference " e just tan lek John e Palm oil troway na John e Garrie" he ended.
The expectations of the Community teachers have been watered down due to the poor implementation of the community teachers' boost funds by the Community Development Committee in Marampa Chiefdom.
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