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UNEB examiners protest low pay

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UNEB examiners protest low pay
Some of the teachers who protested

A total of 56 teachers who had come to mark the Uganda National Examinations Board senior four exam papers abandoned their duties and returned home in protest over the meager pay UNEB offers for marking.

The teachers said the method they are expected to use for marking these papers under the new lower secondary curriculum papers is far more demanding, yet UNEB pays them only shs950 per script, which they claim is too little.

James Patrick Mbulalina and his colleague Sam Aleleu, two of the teachers we managed to speak with, said they were called to mark senior four agriculture paper one exam scripts but were not informed of the payment rate beforehand.

After all the preparations for the marking exercise, they were told they would receive shs950 per paper, but they believe they deserve at least shs1500 for such a heavy workload.

‘‘Under this new curriculum we are required to do a lot compared to the old curriculum, so we cannot have all the work done for only shs950,’’ Aleleu said.

They stated that attempts to negotiate with UNEB failed and  they decided to leave instead of struggling for low pay.

The teachers added that this is not the first time they have worked under such conditions, and they have repeatedly asked UNEB to increase the pay but in vain.

However, when it became clear their pleas would not be answered, they walked away.

They revealed that although some of their colleagues remained behind, they were equally dissatisfied but chose to continue working.

The teachers who left were marking at Namugongo Secondary and Vocational School Centre.

However, when contacted, UNEB spokesperson Jennifer Kalule confirmed that 56 teachers had indeed abandoned the marking exercise.

She explained that UNEB tried to explain to them, but the teachers refused to back down.

‘’We are aware of 56 examiners who have left the centre. We tried to negotiate with them to bear with us but decided to move out but others are still there and they are continuing with the marking of the paper’,’ Kalule noted.

UNEB reassured the public that the remaining teachers are enough to complete marking the exam scripts since they had initially invited a large number of examiners.

At this moment, no other action can be taken except awaiting the UNEB governing board's decision to ensure all activities are not disrupted during this critical marking period.

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