Five persons were sworn in as members of Guyana’s Teaching Service Commission (TSC) on Friday, thereby reconstituting a constitutional body that is geared toward moving swiftly to address the shortage of teachers and the promotion of some members of the teaching profession.
Those who took the oath before President Irfaan Ali were Maydha Persaud, Doodmattie Singh, Joan Ann Davis-Monkhouse, Shafiran Bhajan and Mohammed Saddam Hussain.
Avril Crawford and Sattie Jaiserrisingh, who are nominated to be members of the commission were not sworn in on Friday but will take the oath at a later date.
Once the commission is fully constituted, they will meet to decide on a chairperson and a deputy chairperson.
The members will serve the commission for three years. the chairperson, deputy chairperson and one other member will be full-time members of the Commission.
The president had hoped to make the appointment since July 2022 but a failure on the part of the Opposition Leader to participate in consultations and a subsequent court action had stalled the process.
During brief remarks on Friday, Ali said teachers are the backbone of the education system and are responsible for moulding the minds of the nation’s children and for their varied roles in society.
“Teachers, therefore, are not only indispensable but vital to fashioning responsible citizenship. Given this, great care and attention are taken to make appointments,” Ali said.
He cautioned the new commissioners that all appointments and promotions must be fair and just.
“Children must benefit from high-quality education… appointments must be based on credibility.”
The Teaching Service Commission under the Constitution of Guyana has the mandate to appoint, exercise disciplinary actions and remove teachers at non-board schools.
The last Teaching Service Commission had only completed the 2020 promotions of senior teaching staff.
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