MPs condemn Dow�s �negative attitude� towards teachers
Goitsemodimo Kaelo | Thursday March 31, 2016 11:47
Contributing to debates on the Botswana Examinations Council Amendment Bill 2015 presented by minister Unity Dow Tuesday, most MPs showed discomfort on the amendments and insertions made to Section 5 (1) and (2) of the BEC Act. The Bill proposes that the responsibility for invigilation or supervision of coursework or examination arising and relating to all examinable subjects offered in an examination centre shall remain the responsibility of the examination centre. The Bill also gives the employer (MoESD) the privilege to direct teachers in an examination centre to invigilate candidates sitting for examinations.
MP for Gaborone Central Phenyo Butale said that the MoESD has failed to negotiate with teachers before coming up with the Bill. He said that the teachers’ unions feel strongly that their concerns have not been given adequate attention before the Bill was drafted.
“Discussion between the ministry and the teachers has not happened. I don’t know why this Bill has been rushed to Parliament. Engage teachers’ unions first. Don’t force them,” he said.
Butale said that the Amendment Bill would worsen the plummeting education in the country. He wondered why the government is not tired of having an unhappy workforce.
“You think teachers are robots. They are not tools that can be directed to do what you want.” You are unhappy with the 2009 judgment and now you want to circumvent the judgment and make what the court said was wrong, a law. You are seeking to sort-out teachers with a half-baked and angry Bill.”
Francistown South MP Wynter Mmolotsi said that the responsibility of invigilating and submission of coursework marks for external examinations is not in the scope of work of teachers. He said that the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) government should not take the invigilating and submission of coursework marks responsibilities away from BEC by using their numerical advantage in Parliament to change laws that do not benefit teachers.
Leader of Opposition (LOO) and Member of Parliament for Gaborone-Bonnington South, Duma Boko, said that the regulation of work of teachers is tied to the Public Service Act (PSA). He said that the approach to seek to impose further work on teachers is incorrect and must be a separate arrangement between teachers and BEC based on negotiations. He said that what Dow is doing is to achieve what the court said it could not be done and render the judgment useless. “Because of the imposition of added work, it calls for added remuneration. To ensure the integrity of the external examination, BEC must administer the exams,” he said.
BDP MP for Mahalapye East and assistant minister of Local Government, Botlogile Tshireletso said that some amendments have to be made clear to be understood. She said that Section 5 (a) of the Bill seems to be imposing on teachers without pay and thus challenged the minister to correct it, as teachers have to be paid for invigilating and submitting coursework. She said that MPs should debate issues in the interest of the people they represent and be non-partisan.
In her presentation Dow said that the Bill seeks to address the inadequacies identified in the Act especially Section 5 (1) and (2), make provision of the appointment of board members of the BEC on the basis of their competence, knowledge and experience, remove development and publication criteria for accreditation of external qualifications from the functions of the council, make provision of the appointment of the BEC CEO and make provision for the supervision and invigilation of examination and coursework.