Written by Marie Vesta Desameau
While the Ministry of National Education and Vocational Training (MENFP) has maintained the start of classes for the academic year 2022-2023 this Monday, October 3, 2022, teachers came out to protest in the streets of Jacmel to denounce the bad governance and cynicism of the team in place.
At the initiative of the platform of teachers’ unions in the South-East, the protesters walked through various streets of the city, carrying placards on which were inscribed slogans against the Prime Minister and the Minister of Education for not having been embarrassed to decide to reopen classes despite the socio-political and economic crisis in the country. Not to mention the fact that the government has not managed to free the Varous terminal from the bandits who have taken control of it for several days, further paralyzing the persistent scarcity of fuel.
The teachers criticize the behavior of the MENFP in trying, against all odds, to set the course for the new academic year. According to them, MENFP is not yet ready to officially reopen schools in the country in general, let alone in the Southeast in particular. Until the writing of this article, teachers have not yet received from the ministry the payment due for the correction of the baccalaureate, say several protesters.
In addition, these teachers condition the reopening of classes in the Southeast by the appointment of several of them working for a long time in the education system, in addition to the payment of several months of salary arrears. They took the opportunity to urge the government of Ariel Henry to reverse its decision to increase the price of gasoline and make it readily available at the pump.
After the depreciation of the gourde against the U.S. dollar, and the inflation that goes with it, causing the high cost of living to reach an exceptional level in recent months, the scarcity of fuel and its increase further complicate the situation of Haitian households.
Indeed, teachers who are also parents of students have not failed to denounce the high cost of living and insecurity forcing children to stay home despite official announcements.
It should be noted that several schools in the country have informed parents of students to retain their children at home until further notice.
