NC's Thapa expresses disenchantment over failure to address agitating teachers concerns
KATHMANDU, APRIL 9
Teachers across the country have continued to demonstrate for the eighth day in a row, accompanied by various protests in Kathmandu.
Teachers have been protesting at Maitighar from 11:00am to 4:00pm since April 2. The government has twice invited the Teachers' Confederation to engage in negotiations, but they have refused.
In an attempt to come to an agreement, the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology invited representatives of the teachers who were protesting to consult on April 3 and 4.
Furthermore, in a press statement issued on April 8, Ministry Spokesperson and Joint Secretary Shiva Kumar Sapkota had urged the Confederation of Nepalese Teachers to hold a dialogue with all protesting school teachers and staff.
However, the talks were cancelled because the teachers did not respond to the invitation.
The agitating teachers have demanded that last year's agreement be implemented.
The government is preparing to implement the earlier agreement by enacting the School Education Act. A subcommittee is debating the bill because the parliament is currently closed.
The confederation has been asserting that the government is not prepared to carry out the agreement because Parliament did not discuss the bill and the session ended while the teachers were still demonstrating.
The confederation has been implementing various protest strategies on a daily basis. They raised their hands in a demonstration on Wednesday from Maitighar to Babarmahal. They had previously protested by donning black masks and blowing whistles.
Meanwhile, the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has stated that four issues are complicating the formulation of the School Education Act. Sumana Shrestha, the former Education Minister and Joint General Secretary of the RSP, stated in a statement that four issues are complex.
According to the RSP, the definition of educational quality is complicated. It should be defined in such a way that teachers, students, parents, and the entire society understand what educational quality is and what structures are required to achieve it. There should be clear guidelines for how many resources are required for quality, as well as how, by whom, and in what manner this will be ensured. The Education Bill must include a comprehensive discussion of this topic. Such a discussion cannot take place solely on the streets, according to the statement.
Second, RSP believes that it should be clear whether school education is a profitable endeavour or not. "The government appears to be in a quandary about whether school education is a profit-making place or not," the statement said.
"The Prime Minister's public statement that 'make profit' is not only unfortunate, but it also raises concerns about whether the right to free education, a constitutionally guaranteed right of citizens, will be hampered by various provisions. This is a complex problem with far-reaching consequences. The state should consider education an investment. The state should invest more in it and work towards eliminating the concept of schools as a profitable business. We believe that the clear views of teachers on this will give momentum to the bill."
In the third point, the RSP believes that the unconstitutional agreement has made it difficult to draft the act. According to the statement, the government will not enter into agreements that violate the spirit of the constitution. Additionally, the government must determine which points of previous agreements can be implemented immediately and which require a new act.
Lastly, in the fourth point, RSP has pointed out that politics in the education sector is a chief problem. "We believe that partisan political interference and party transition in the education sector have harmed the quality of education, tarnished teachers' social prestige, and lowered teacher morale, reducing interest in the teaching profession. We urge teachers to renounce political party membership by following the clear provisions of Section 16 of the Education Act. The education sector must be completely free of partisan politics in order to provide high-quality education," reads the statement.
Nepali Congress (NC) General Secretary Gagan Thapa has expressed disenchantment with the government, led by CPN-UML Chair KP Oli, for failing to address agitating teachers' concerns. Addressing the Rupandehi regional conference, he expressed dissatisfaction, claiming that the prime minister and ministers had stopped working and were preoccupied with inaugurations and speeches.
He stated, "Teachers are in the streets. If the government had acted in the right time and manner, they would not have had to take to the streets. Nothing has gone wrong so far. Teachers' demands should be addressed and sent to their work as soon as possible."
