Protests: Teachers demand higher pay, better insurance

MMAP addressed the rally and warned that millions of teachers will march towards Parliament House.

SWABI:

Representatives of the 0.9-million-strong teachers association, Muttahida Mahaz Asateza Pakistan (MMAP), protested on Sunday in Swabi for better pays and insurance.

MMAP central chairman Muhammad Nawaz Khattak addressed the rally and warned that millions of teachers will march towards Parliament House on May 29 if their demands are not met.

“We will take out a rally on Monday (today) in Mansehra and one in Multan on Tuesday to forward our demands.”

All Teachers Association’s Swabi president Abdul Latif Khan, provincial president Mian Faiq Zada Kakakhel and other officials also addressed protesters.

The full list of teachers’ demands is as follows: a revision of the pay scale, doubling of salaries, medical and travel allowances, and an increase in life insurance.

Protesters said inflation and continuous price hikes have made things worse. All allowances combined have remained insufficient, they claimed.

They demanded the authority of the monitoring system in place for teachers should be handed over to the head of respective institutions.

Talking about the protest, one of the representatives said all offices and educational institutions will remain locked while the federal government will be responsible for any consequences.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 19^th, 2014.