THE ALLIANCE of Concerned Teachers rebutted the claim of Education Secretary Leonor Briones that teachers have been receiving their allowances and compensation on time.

The group said that their benefits are not only “overly delayed” but inadequate, and that Department of Education not only have “shortcomings” but owes teachers big because of their continued neglect.

“Paano nila naaatim magsinungaling nang harap-harapan sa ating mga guro? Benefits delayed are benefits denied, and to say that teachers are receiving theirs on time is such a blatant lie. It is already hard enough for our teachers who must suffer the brunt of the government’s incompetence, the least the agency could do is own up and take responsibility for its shortcomings instead lying,” Raymond Basilio, the group’s secretary general, said.

He said that teachers’ Performance-Based Bonus in 2019 took more than a year to be processed. The incentive was only approved for release this week.

Meanwhile, the 100 gigabytes connectivity load for teachers and other DEPED personnel, which Undersecretary Alain Del Pascua promised last March, has yet to be released. The group added that some teachers have yet to get the reimbursement for the P300 monthly communication expenses for 2020.

“Napakahaba na ng listahan ng utang ng gobyerno sa ating mga guro! Our teachers always go beyond what is asked for the sake of education, but that does not mean we would sit idly and just watch as the government take advantage of our teachers’ dedication to their profession,” Basilio warned.

He added that among the “debts” are the grant of the P1,500 monthly internet allowance, payment for the 77 days overtime service and 25 percent overtime pay.

“Alam at nararamdaman ng ating mga guro ang pagpapabaya ng gobyerno sa sektor ng edukasyon, at hindi kami magpapaloko sa mga kasinungalingan nito. We’ve had enough of the government’s lies and deceit, and we will charge the Duterte administration for its debts,” Basilio said.