Andrew
Leroy Dzenga, Harmony Agere and Dennis Chimanzi
Mrs Naomi Gunda (not her real name) of Kambuzuma 5 wanders around her yard.
There is animated activity around her, as her children play in the dust with no care in the world.
They are supposed to be in class, but learning at their school has been suspended.
Mrs Gunda has been praying that the impasse between teachers and their employer is resolved soon, but she does not think her three children will have enough learning time this term.
Schools, which were supposed to open on January 10, only opened doors to learners on Monday last week because of the coronavirus.
Teachers at a school in Kambuzuma in Harare, where her children learn, are demanding incentives to conduct lessons.
“Teachers are asking for money; we are being asked to pay US$3 per week. I have three children and this means that I have to pay US$9 every week and US$36 every month,” she said.
Such unsanctioned payments seem to have been normalised at the school, as most educators are using the same rate.
The Sunday Mail last week gathered that learners in Early Childhood Development (ECD) pay US$2, those between Grade One and Grade Three are levied US$3, while those in remaining grades pay US$4.
But parents do not have any other option.
“When you have a child, you know better than argue with a teacher who spends the day with them. Despite all the disturbances you see during the school calendar, examinations still come, so we have to self-preserve and pay what is being demanded,” said Mrs Gunda.
At this school in Kambuzuma, learners who fail to cough up the incentives attend classes three times a week, while those who pay are admitted daily.
One of Mrs Gunda’s children is in a class with 55 pupils.
This means that the teacher could potentially get as much as US$660 every month from extra lessons alone, which is more than most managers are getting in the private sector.
The just-ended impasse between teachers and the Government provided rich pickings for teachers, with some providing the extra lessons in the comfort of their homes, far from the prying eyes of authorities.
Many primary schools last week resembled ghost towns: Classes were empty and there were no teachers, save for a few senior staffers.
This was the situation at most public schools countrywide.
Apparently, some schools are using their reputation to wring cash out of desperate parents.
The Sunday Mail witnessed a parent giving money to their child for onward transmission to a teacher at a school in Glen View.
“This has been going on for so long. We are now used to paying. We approached the teachers ourselves, because we were seeing that our children are now behind,” the parent said.
If a child does not pay for extra lessons at the school, they are excluded from certain tasks and assignments.
They will also be taught from morning until 11am, with the rest of the day being dedicated to children covered under the special arrangement.
“It is simple, if you do not pay, your child fails,” the parent added, equating the money to ransom.
Some of these lessons are being cunningly labelled as online lessons, where parents pay money to be added to a WhatsApp group to receive important learning material.
In some instances, teachers have begun diverting learners from schools and directing them to their own private teaching spaces.
Teachers at this school in Glen View are said to be renting full houses which they use as learning centres for their extra lessons.
Bribes for enrolment
Beyond extra lessons, school officials are also making a killing through bribes-for-enrolment schemes.
The Sunday Mail gathered that admission at some schools is being sold to the highest bidder.
“This school is famed for good results and parents jostle to secure places for their children. Some sleep in the queue and teachers are making a killing.
“They have put up posters saying they do not have places and when a parent goes on to negotiate, they are charged,” said a parent who “bought” a placement for her child.
Another parent told this publication that officials at some schools had set up a sophisticated syndicates handling admissions.
Parents are reportedly forking out as much as US$150 for their children to be enrolled.
The schemes in some cases involve school bursars.
“If you do not pay the money, you will not get a place. The situation has gone out of hand,” a parent said on condition of anonymity.
Parents seeking admission of their children at a primary school in Kuwadzana have been gathering at the premises since schools opened last Monday to secure places for their children.
Some complained about lack of transparency in enrolment.
They accused the school of working with middlemen who are charging parents various amounts of money to secure places for their children.
An official at the school demanded US$50 from The Sunday Mail crew who were posing as desperate parents.
During the course of its investigations, reporters under cover also managed to secure a place for a Grade Five learner after paying US$100 to an administration official.
Another school singled out for similar corruption is a top Mutare primary school.
“The school head does not tell you openly but the obstacles you face force you to pay. They just say classes are full. However, if you go back home and come back with US$200 and give it to them, you would get it,” said a parent who has two children at the school.
For both her children in ECD and Grade Two, she used the same modus operandi to secure places.
At another primary school in Bindura, officials are allegedly asking parents for up to US$250 for enrolment.
Parents are worried that teachers and school authorities will struggle to let go of corrupt practices.
The Government has, however, promised to deal with the rot.
Director of communication and advocacy in the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education Mr Taungana Ndoro said they will be working with law enforcement agents.
“The ministry is aware of those underhand dealings; they remain illegal. The ministry is working hand-in-glove with the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission to bring those culprits to book.
“Any parent or guardian who becomes a victim of such unscrupulous activities should bring it to the attention of the ministry, ZACC or the nearest police station,” said he said.
The City of Harare, which runs some of the schools notorious for such malpractices, said the teachers are employed by the Government and council cannot comment on their activities.
ZACC spokesperson Commissioner John Makamure said the anti-graft watchdog was enhancing public awareness.
“We have been doing public education campaigns and we are going to expand them so that we cover more schools.
“I cannot say it was an investigation but an educative process to show teachers and headmasters that there is need to change certain things,” said Commissioner Makamure.
ZACC, he added, will not hesitate to move in once a report is made against a school.
Zimbabwe Schools Development Committees/ Association secretary Mr Evaristo Jongwe said to avoid being fleeced, parents must use the Electronic Ministry Application Platform (eMAP) for enrolment.
“The online platform was established to safeguard parents, so they need to use it to their advantage and curb corruption.
“Establishing the system has been a gradual process, but it has been improving by the year, making life easy for applicants,” he said.
Jongwe said parents should avoid the last-minute hassle of looking for places as it leaves them in a vulnerable position.
However, the eMAP system has been abused.
Parents and school heads are conniving to bypass the system.
Investigations by this publication showed that a parent is asked to pay a bribe first and then their child’s name is picked by the school authorities at the back-end of the platform.
With each passing day, sending a child to school in Zimbabwe is becoming more expensive.
For the poor who cannot pay up, they can only watch in agony.
◆ Names of all schools withheld as investigations by authorities continue.
Online Reporter