Govt urged to help reunite couples in civil service forced to live apart due to transfers

Government has been urged to quickly speed up the process of reuniting married couples in the civil service who were separated due to transfers.

This is according to Special Education Teachers Union of Zambia (SPETUZ) president Frankson Musukwa in a statement issued on Monday.

Musukwa reminded government of the long standing and pending issues of reuniting married couples.

“We are aware that the Cabinet issued a circular minute CO53/9/1 of 2022 dated January 11, 2022 in which the deadline for submissions of transfer letters of married couples was February 28, 2022” he said.

Musukwa said President Hakainde Hichilema on October 5, 2022 during commemoration of World Teachers Day further directed Secretary to Cabinet Patrick Kangwa to ensure that guidelines and procedures are set and enforced by November, 2022 to start the process of reuniting civil servants separated from their families due to transfers.

“While this was a very good move and motivating factor to all married couples the union is concerned that nothing has been done up to date not even a status update to the nation,” he said.

Musukwa argued that separated couples were really suffering because of high cost of managing two separate homes.

“We appeal to the government to quicken this process so that couples can be reunited with their families and lessen on them spending twice, thereby making them poor and poorer,” he said.

Musukwa noted that the President assented to the Emoluments Act on April 8, 2022 and it came into effect on July 6, 2022.

“We also appreciate the fact that there was a directive given that personal emoluments owed to civil servants must be paid,”he said.

Musukwa said it was saddening to learn that many teachers across the country have up to to-date not been paid their owed emoluments in, settling allowances, transfers and leave days.

He complained the process has not been done in all provinces and districts.

“We call upon the government to complete this process so that teachers are paid all their outstanding allowances,” Musukwa said.

Musukwa said they were pleased that the government had paid attention to many challenges which the teachers of special education and teachers were facing.

Contributed by Julius Phiri

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