1,000 ARMM teachers get back wages

COTABATO CITY—Over 1,000 teachers in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) have started receiving back wages following a review of their pay.

ARMM Education Secretary John Magno said the delayed payment of teachers’ salaries in the five-province region was brought about by an “unsystematic process” of past administrations.

Among those who received their back wages, worth a total of P60 million, were 283 primary and secondary teachers from Maguindanao.

Amalia Gonong, one of the recipients, got a total of P128,000 representing her salary from June 2013 to April 2015.

The money, she said, will be used to pay her debts and the enrollment of her son, who is now in college.

Reynaldo Aguirre, a teacher at the Pupol Primary School in Buluan town, got more than P250,000 in back wages.

In the coming days, Magno said teachers in Lanao del Sur and Marawi City, and those from Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi will start receiving their back wages as well.

The release of back wages started in 2013 with about 500 teachers receiving a total of P146 million. Charlie Senase and Edwin Fernandez, Inquirer Mindanao