By Adama Makasuba
The Gambia government has come to rescue of 700 teachers as it paid 7,200,000 dalasi to the account of Gambia Teachers Cooperative Credit Union to be used to settled the arears owed by Catholic Education Secretariat.
At least 700 teachers last week launched a sit-down strike after over 7mmillion dalasis as they said the Catholic Education Secretariat deducted their salaries and benefits.
It comes barely a week since the hundreds of teachers under CES pay roll boycotted classrooms. It also comes after both Ministry of Education and Gambia Teachers Union frowned on CES decision of deducting salaries of teachers without their consent and urged the secretariat to desist from repeating such activity.
Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education also handed 1 million dalalsis for the affected teachers to be paid.
Meanwhile, speaking to journalists, Essa Sowe president of Gambia Teachers Union, said: “On Friday 13 of March precisely, government agreed to transfer 7.2 [200,000] million dalasi that weas requested to the Gambia Teachers Cooperative Credit Union account.”
“And on Saturday 14, they were distributed to the relevant institutions, that is the Catholic Education Credit Union- Gambia Teachers Cooperative Credit Union and the main Union-Gambia’s Teachers Unions View,” he added.
The money will today be handed to Catholic Secretariat Credit Union to be distributed to various accounts for the affected teachers to receive, he said.
So presently what is happening from tomorrow, Catholic Secretariat Credit Union will now be distributing the money to various accounts.