Africa-Press – South-Sudan. The Teachers’ Union in South Sudan’s Northern Bahr el Ghazal State has rejected orders from the state’s Ministry of Education to step down, accusing ministry officials of targeting union leaders for exposing administrative malpractices.
The directive, which cites poor leadership and management, demands that the union relinquish its roles and assets to a new body, a move the union deemed invalid.
Union chairperson Kon Deng Khon, in an interview on Wednesday, declared the ministry’s letter ordering their removal “null and void.”
Khon criticised the decision, issued through the ministry’s Director General, as “poorly justified and politically motivated”. Deng alleged that the ministry’s actions stem from the union’s vocal opposition to issues such as delayed teacher salaries, which he attributed to fraudulent practices by a few ministry elites.
“They handed us letters demanding we surrender union assets, including the letterhead and stamp, claiming our two-year term has expired. This is baseless,” Khon stated.
“We are elected through county recommendations, not by ministry elites who ignore teachers’ grievances,” the director added.
He emphasised that he would only step down if teachers from all counties explicitly demand new leadership.
Khon further accused the ministry of attempting to silence the union’s advocacy for better teacher welfare, including addressing salary cuts and inadequate motivation, stating: “Their goal is to suppress us, but we will not hand over to their chosen successors,” he asserted.
In response, Valentino Anei Deng, the Director General of the state’s Ministry of Education, denied the union’s allegations. He stated that the removal was prompted by the union’s failure to draft a constitution as required.
“Their time is up, and they have not produced the guiding principles we need. They must hand over the assets to new union leaders,” Anei said.
Anei also addressed the issue of delayed teacher salaries, attributing it to local money transfer companies that have agreements with the ministry.
“These companies deposit funds in banks to earn interest before disbursing them, which causes delays,” he explained, describing the companies as business entities operating under memoranda of understanding with the ministry.
Tensions between the Teachers’ Union and the Ministry of Education have persisted since Monday, with union leaders refusing to comply with the directive to hand over. It remains unclear how this standoff will be resolved or what steps will be taken to address the ongoing dispute.
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