"A year without pensions", Basra's teachers robbed and humiliated

Shafaq News/ Throughout history, teaching has always been a sacred mission, and teachers are often praised as prophets who tutor future generations and lead them into enlightenment and virtue. However, in Mesopotamia -the cradle of civilization and culture- it is no longer uncommon for teachers to experience humiliation and disrespect in broad daylight, sometimes by the hand of their own pupils.

On Tuesday, riot police in Basra suppressed a demonstration of dozens of retired education personnel and employees in front of the provincial court building in response to their demand for pensions and end-of-service benefits.

The Iraqi parliament amended the unified pension law in 2019 in response to a proposal by the Council of Ministers, following massive demonstrations that swept the country and later turned into the Tishreen (October) Revolution. As a result of this amendment, the retirement age became 60 instead of 63.

Abu Hussein, a teacher from Basra, stated, "After 36 years of service, I was referred to retirement in July 2021. It's been 15 months, and I have not received my pension yet."

"Even though pension cuts were regularly deducted from my monthly salary, I am not sure why my pension is still not paid."

He mentioned that "the amount of the service bonus has yet to be paid. It is the right of every retiree and amounts to ten million Iraqi dinars," adding that the Ministry of Education is likely to "bargain with us on the amount of the service bonus in order to waive our legal entitlement in exchange for distributing our pensions."

"I provide for a family that includes a patient with a chronic illness and a college student who needs financial support," Abu Hussein said, emphasizing that "I am going through an extremely difficult financial situation due to the delay in the pension."

Parliamentary intervention

Meanwhile, MP Alaa al-Haidari revealed suspicions among Basra's MPs. He said there is a significant manipulation of employees' funds in the governorate's Education department, due to which, the disbursement of pension funds is overlooked.

In an audio message sent by al-Haidari to a WhatsApp group for retired Basra education staff, obtained by Shafaq News Agency, he revealed that he had visited the Pension Authority, as well as the Ministry of Education, twice in the previous days to discuss the issue, noting that he had "filed a complaint with the Public Prosecution against the Basra Department of Education and the National Pension Authority."

"The Minister of Education assured me during the meeting that he would raise the issue before the Council of Ministers, and issued an order to host the director of the Public Pension Authority more than a month ago."

He went on to say that the authority's director informed him that the Basra Education Department distributed the pension sums to build schools and implement other projects.

"Basra deputies are serious about following up on this file, and we believe there is a great manipulation in the retirement funds, which is why the request to distribute pensions is currently rejected," Al-Haidari explained.

He also confirmed that "investigations are underway even though the money is gone, to determine who is responsible for the disbursement of funds and hold them accountable."

Grand Theft

Meanwhile, a group of retirees claimed that "the funds belonging to them as pensions amounted to 33 billion Iraqi dinars," though they believe that the amount that vanished is much larger than the Department of Education alleged.

"Over 1,400 retirees born in 1961 and 1962 were referred to retirement by the Basra education department last year, as part of government plan based on the Public Pension Law," they said, noting that they have not yet received their salaries, despite the passage of more than a whole year.

They also stated that their stolen salaries amount to 33 billion Iraqi dinars. Basra's Education Department, on the other hand, stated that the money was spent on school construction and other projects due to the delay in approving government budgets.

The retirees continued, "We filed a complaint with the Integrity Commission at the beginning of this year, and all of the accountants in the Education Department were arrested. However, they were released on a 75 million-Iraqi-dinars bail, and the lawsuit was settled without disclosing the Commission's investigative findings."

They appealed through Shafaq News Agency to the competent authorities, especially Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, to "start an investigation to recover their rights and stolen pensions."

It is worth noting that Shafaq News Agency attempted to contact the Basra Education and Retirement Departments, but there was no response.