By Darlington Gatsi
FORMER Finance Minister Tendai Biti has castigated the government over the wage stalemate with University of Zimbabwe (UZ) lecturers, saying the once-noble professionals have been reduced to a mockery.
UZ lecturers are at loggerheads with the institution and the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education over paltry salaries. The lecturers currently earn US$250 and are demanding an upward review to US$3,500.
Biti said the status quo is a denigration of workers.
“Education is a fundamental driver of dignity, development & upliftment. It is the ultimate equaliser. Teachers & lecturers are a national asset. That the Harare regime is paying US$250 to a university professor whilst billions are being looted by gangsters & cronies is an indictment.
“In any normal country, it is a privilege to teach at a university. In Zimbabwe, our professionals have been reduced to rag-tag beggars whilst dropouts & convicts parade ill-gotten loot that they dish out like confetti. Teachers, doctors, nurses & all must be paid a decent living wage.
“This regime has failed—and failed in absolute terms. Its treatment of working people, its debasement of professionals, the collapse of public services, the corruption, the decay—these are daily narratives. We therefore restate the call for a new consensus. This one has failed!” said Biti.
Buoyed by a High Court judgment that granted them permission to picket without fear of arrest, UZ lecturers have downed tools and are protesting at the institution over poor remuneration.
In their initial letter to the UZ and government, the lecturers expressed frustration over the employers’ inaction in addressing their grievances.
The situation is further compounded by a lack of resources, leaving lecturers to use personal equipment.
“Despite prolonged engagement over 18 months, the employer and the minister have failed to meet AUT’s demands or make any reasonable alternative offer, resulting in the issuance of a Certificate of No Settlement.
“The dispute remains unresolved, and lecturers and their families are languishing in extreme poverty, with a net monthly salary of less than US$250 and ZiG 6,000—a sum from which the employer harshly and unfairly expects employees to subsidise it by providing personal property as tools of work, including laptops, smartphones, data, and transport to and from work,” read the letter.