The fiasco over the ongoing fast-unto-death of teachers demanding inclusion in the government's Monthly Pay Order (MPO) scheme and how it came about despite there being a policy to execute the scheme, bespeaks a noble effort that's gone haywire thanks to neglect and systemic failure. It has also posed a challenge: the education ministry now must find a way to persuade the teachers to end their strike, which rolled into its fifth day on Thursday, while making sure the conditions set by the MPO policy are properly met, which is a time-consuming process.

According to a report by The Daily Star, many participants in the strike have already fallen sick, some of them even hospitalised. The demonstrators have asked for a specific timeframe for inclusion, unconvinced that the minister's assurance to that effect will have the desired results. True, the minister's assurance constitutes a vague response to a very specific demand. But given the nature of the demand, it is important that all parties show the best judgment on their part so that order is restored in the 5,242 educational institutions that are still out of MPO coverage. If there is any merit to the demand being raised, it should be addressed in the proper way.

However, what worries us more is the disruptive pattern that has developed in the public sector lately, in which grievances by professionals are not solved until there is a crisis point when solutions are sought on an ad-hoc basis. This pattern must be broken.