W. Bahr el Ghazal pays SSP 8 million in gratuity claims
WAU, 21 July 2014 – South Sudan’s Western Bahr el Ghazal state is currently paying gratuity claims totalling SSP 8 million owed to former staff affected by downsizing in 2008.
“Our ministry is facing a payment of 8 million pounds to 3,000 people who were downsised in the past years of which we have right now started paying out,” Madut told reporters Monday.
“We are here today to tell our people to remain calm and continue Waiting for their pays as we are quite sure to pay all of them before the end of this year,” she added.
According to the minister, no one will be left unpaid in the ongoing exercise, which comes about over 200 staff demonstrated over delays by the state labour ministry to pay the long-awaited claims.
TEACHERS STILL WAITING PAYMENTS
Meanwhile, Madut said it was difficult to pay teachers demanding salaries, which were not planned for in previous budget estimates for the state.
“There is no way that the ministry can do to serve these teachers who do not have qualification documents unless the council of ministers allocate their appointment budget into chapter(I),” she said.
Last month, pupils from five primary schools in Kuajieno payam (district) protested following the dismissal of 500 teachers the ministry claimed were “illegally” appointed.
The state legislative chairperson for the education committee, Natalina Idris Jano, earlier urged the labour ministry to devise appropriate ways of addressing challenges facing schools in the state.
“There is an urgent need for the two ministries to sit down and find everlasting solutions to the issues facing teachers who do not have appropriate appointment while teaching,” Jano earlier told Sudan Tribune.
(ST)