UNC youth arm: Protests disrupting UWI students' lives

THE UNC's national youth arm is calling on the government to immediately raise the funding allocated to the University of the West Indies (UWI), St Augustine campus to bring an end to continued protests by the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT), which it believes are "disrupting the lives of students."

Over the last two months, the union has been protesting over stalled wage talks for senior administrative and professional staff as it is yet to receive a remit from the Chief Personnel Officer (CPO) Daryl Dindial.

In addition to walks around the campus, the union has been protesting by refusing to sign and submit final exam papers to the examination section; refusing to upload students' coursework grades and only indicating whether they failed or passed; refusing to have office hours and responses to students and facilitators outside the classroom; and refusing to hold remedial classes, among other things.

This week, WIGUT began what it called operation blackout which called for members to refrain from teaching, having tutorials, lab sessions, etc. It is the last week of the semester.

As a result of operation blackout, some students have had exams postponed.

The campus' Guild of Students said it does not support WIGUT's actions and that it understands "how concerned our members are about the proposed actions.

"The guild stands firmly on the stance that our members should not be implicated in matters that are beyond our control."

In a press release on Tuesday, UNC's youth arm cast blame on the Prime Minister and the Education Minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly for "allowing UWI to reach this point.

"It is the direct result of their cut in funding to UWI by ten per cent in June 2022 and the gutting of the GATE programme since they started their term in 2015."

Campus principal Prof Rose-Marie Belle Antoine recently highlighted that government contributions to UWI dropped from $529,611,000 in 2021 to $485,146,000 in 2022.

The youth arm said the situation is alarming and "has left the institution struggling to pay their outstanding bills and to meet staff negotiations and provide quality education to its students.

"The eviscerating of the GATE programme has also resulted in low student enrolment, as many students just cannot afford the high cost of tuition.

"We understand that staff members of UWI are frustrated and are taking action by protesting to demand better working conditions and compensation. However, we also recognise that these protests have disrupted the lives of students, causing many to miss classes and fall behind in their studies."

It said UWI is a "critical institution" in TT and it's unacceptable it is being set up for failure by government's lack of policies.

"The UWI is not a luxury – it is a necessity for the growth and development of our nation's youth.

"It is imperative that the government invests in higher education, not only for the students currently enrolled but also for future generations, and it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that it has the resources it needs to provide quality education to our nation's youth."

It called on the government to prioritise the education of young people and to recognise that education is an investment in TT's future.

"We insist that the Government of TT take a cue from the government of Jamaica, which has recently announced a $4 billion dollar increase in funding for the UWI Jamaica campus.

"Failure to address this issue could result in a decrease in the quality of education at UWI, leading to more class disruption and protests by staff members."