Teachers from hard-to-reach areas have stormed the Mayuge district headquarters in protest of inconsistencies in their salary payments. The 50 teachers working in island communities and along landing sites say that they spend a lot of money on transport costs, and it is unfair for them to experience inconsistencies in their salary payments.
They say that their salaries are often delayed without justification from the district leaders, causing them to lead frustrated lives. Led by Hakim Kafeero, a teacher at Kaza Island primary school, in Jaguzi sub county, they say the salary inconsistencies are rampant in Mayuge district, with all leaders making false promises, which never materialize.
Kafeero says that this challenge intensified during the COVID-19 period, and they only experienced a window of stability between 2023 and 2024, but the challenge manifested again towards the end of 2025. Kafeero, who earns a net pay of 590,000 Shillings, says that he first experienced a salary cut of 150,000 Shillings in September, 2025, and he approached the district leadership, but the challenge persisted.
For April 2026, Kafeero says that he recieved a salary of 230,000 Shillings, forcing him to lead his colleagues with similar challenges, to jointly demand lasting solutions to their problem. Another female teacher who spoke on condition of anonymity says that she is supposed to earn a net pay of 560,000 Shillings, but has been recieving 270,000 Shillings instead for the past eight months.
The female teacher says that, rather than increasing their wage bill with a boost of hard-to-reach allowances, it is instead decreasing. Another teacher who spoke on condition of anonymity says that she is supposed to earn a net pay of 565,000 Shillings monthly; however, she receives 255,000.
The lady says that she sleeps on the mainland since her school lacks staff quarters, but with the persistent one-year-long salary cuts, she has been suffocating in rental arrears ever since. She adds that some teachers are unable to transport themselves to the different schools due to a lack of funds, costing learners ample study time.
Ivan Mutakubwa, a teacher at Bukagabo primary school, says that he is supposed to earn 520,000 Shillings, and the bank messages on his phone have been confirming this, but only 330,000 Shillings is reflected in the bank account. Mutakubwa says that this situation has persisted for over a year, and he has been going to the district headquarters for help, but not much has been done for him.
In response, the Mayuge district chief administrative officer, Abdul Batambuze, says that the challenges faced by the teachers are beyond their control since they lack the power to alter anything on the payment system. He has since advised teachers to write salary claim forms and attach their bank statements, which enable them to reimburse all their arrears at once. “When we pay, we assume that everyone has recieved because the payment system does not give us any provision for rectifying errors in the course of salary disbursements. Therefore, this challenge is beyond our district accounting officers, and I advise teachers to write claim forms,” he says.
Batambuze says that the hard-to-reach funds were scrapped centrally, with other local governments experiencing the same, but they are making follow-up with relevant authorities to rectify the abnormality. “Our teachers should stay focused and calm, because relevant authorities are working around the clock to address the salary payments within the shortest time possible,” he says.
Batambuze also raised the challenge of endless politicking within Mayuge district, where he blames a section of what he termed as ill-minded individuals, for mobilizing teachers to storm the district headquarters, yet they could have peacefully addressed their challenges to the district education officer for further handling. Batambuze says that such tendencies create unnecessary chaos, yet there are set procedures for ensuring timely problem-solving and solution generation for all-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
