There are more than 300 school teachers who have gone to work for polling stations in the areas of Kachin State with poor transport and communications, according to the Kachin State Basic Education Department.
State Education Officer Daw Khin Than Nwe said Kawnglanghpu, Hsawlaw and northern Naungmoon townships and Pannandin Sub-township are especially facing poor transport and communications.
“Over 200 teachers assigned to in Kawnglanghpu Township were called to gather in PutaO for training. Over 100 teachers for Hsawlaw Township received training in Myitkyina. They all had to go into quarantine for 14 days. Those regions have no easy access. We cannot have phone connections in many parts of them. Those teachers are not natives. We have to coordinate with respective education officers and administrative authorities,” she said.
Kachin State has 918 polling booths for the 2020 general election. One polling station is estimated to have 11 teachers to work for. As the number is not enough, only more than 14,000 teachers can be used in the whole state, Daw Khin Than Nwe added.
One male teacher and three female teachers working in Kawnglanghpu Township were transported back by military helicopter on October 26 for their poor health conditions. Three are being hospitalized at PutaO People’s Hospital while one suffering from cerebral inflammation is receiving treatment at Myitkyina People’s Hospital.
