THE ALLIANCE of Concerned Teachers urged the AO25 Inter-Agency Task Force, the body responsible for the approval of Performance-based Bonus of government employees, to grant the incentives of teaching and non-teaching personnel of the Department of Education for 2019.

The group cited the need to urgently address “palpable health, economic threats and effects of the Covid19” that have affected thousands of public school teachers and non-teaching personnel nationwide.

It said these personnel need immediate relief, having acted beyond their duty to ensure education continuity amid the pandemic.

“Our education workers have practically nothing left. Nagmahal ang presyo ng mga bilihin at patuloy ang gastos sa distance learning pero ang mga karampatang benepisyo, wala pa rin. Inabot na ng 2021 ang kanilang utang na PBB 2019, hanggang kailan nila paghihintayin ang mga guro at kawani?” Raymond Basilio, the group’s secretary general, asked.

Basilio asserted that DepEd employees have “more than delivered their duties as they practically filled in the shortcomings of the government” in the implementation of distance learning.

“On top of the numerous duties of our teachers, they diligently met the voluminous documentary requirements to qualify for this benefit as their meager salaries simply could not sustain their basic needs. It is the height of insensitivity of those concerned to be slacking in their duty to process the PBB on time,” he said.

Basilio lamented that the release of the PBB for DepEd employees had always been delayed.

“Now, where is the moral ascendancy of these offices who evaluate our performance when they themselves perform poorly on their duties?” he asked.