Arts teachers will officially have no salary increment in the current (2022-2023) financial year despite recommendations by Parliament of Uganda that government deals with salary disparities between arts and science teachers, and stops discriminatory salary enhancement.
While Uganda National Teachers’ Union (Unatu) had expressed hope when Parliament included the issue of discriminatory salary enhancement on the order paper on return from recess, this optimism seems to have been dashed to the ground this week when the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) released funds for the first quarter (Q1) of the 2022-2023 financial year.
During an event to release the funds, Ramathan Ggoobi, the Permanent Secretary of the Finance Ministry, who doubles as the secretary to the treasury (PSST), made it clear that no supplementary budgets would be entertained.
PSST Ggoobi revealed that only supplementary requests for security and industrial development purposes would be allowed.
To emphasize his point, Ggoobi issued a directive to all accounting officers to desist from filing supplementary requests, saying these will be ignored.
“Please accounting officer, don’t waste paper and ink typing supplementary requests. I will not process them,” said the PSST.
“This Ministry will not entertain supplementary budgets this Financial Year, which are not for security or industrial policy purposes, themselves accommodated within the three per cent of the appropriated budget as provided for in the law.”
If Ggoobi’s directive is anything to go by, it means that Ketty Lamaro, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Sports (and therefore its accounting officer), will not have her request for a supplementary budget to increase arts teachers’ salaries processed — in the event that she makes the request.
It should be remembered that weeks ago, MPs told government to either process a supplementary budget to increase arts teachers’ salaries or equally divide the available funds to enhance salaries of both arts and science teachers. (Read Story Here).
Already, government has released Shs1.6tn to cater for salaries of all government employees under the new salary structure. (Read Story Here).
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READ MORE STORIES FROM OUR EXTENSIVE COVERAGE OF SALARY INCREMENT AND STRIKES OVER PAY ENHANCEMENT BELOW:
In order to improve service delivery and end the challenge of strikes over low pay, President Museveni’s government has proposed huge salary increments for teachers, doctors and other employees starting July 2022. (Read Story Here)
The proposed increments left many people wondering if government will really fulfill this pledge and increase salaries by very high amounts.
For example, opposition leader Dr Kizza Besigye has argued that the promise of salary increment is just ‘another lie.’ (Read Story Here).
Finance Minister Matia Kasaija said the money for increasing teachers’, doctors’ and other civil servants’ salaries was available. (Read Story Here).
In August 2021, cabinet approved salary increment for teachers, doctors and other health workers. (Read Story Here).
See the salary structure that had been proposed for the 2021-2022 financial year here.
UPDATED LIST: See Salary Structure for All Government Workers
Meanwhile, an NRM MP angered teachers after telling them they are too poor to go on strike. (Read Story Here).
MORE STORIES ON OUR COVERAGE OF ARTS TEACHERS’ STRIKE
Arts Teachers’ Strike Suspended after UNATU Meeting with Museveni
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