Three teacher unions in the Central Region have petitioned the Regional Minister, Hon. Justina Marigold Assan, to call on the government to fulfil its broken promises regarding allowances owed to teachers in the country.
Teacher unions who jointly embarked to petition the Regional Minister include, the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), and the Coalition of Concerned Teachers – Ghana (CCT-GH).
Prior to its submission, the petition witnessed a massive procession of respective union members through Cape Coast’s main streets, dressed in red and holding placards.
The unions, in their demand to the government through the Regional Minister, who by profession is a trained teacher, have threatened to proceed with a strike action should their request this time around hit the iceberg, owing to the government’s continued failure to implement allowances agreed on.
The petition was received by the Regional Internal Auditor, Mr. Waszy Balukia Mukaila since the Central Regional Minister and her Director were both absent on an equally important assessment elsewhere.
Abdulai Baba Yussif, the Central Regional Secretary for GNAT, who, on behalf of the teacher unions, addressed the media, recounted that the allowances they have been battling over the past 15 years are 17, but due to several considerations by the teacher unions, they were reduced to four (4).
Hence, over the years, the government has only paid for the deprived area allowance, the extra assessment allowance, the book/data/online teaching support allowance, and the upward adjustment of the CPD allowance.
They complained that, despite this good-faith gesture, the government continues to act adamantly and in bad faith.
According to them, anything less than their demand will cause them to call on leadership to take immediate action, and if this occurs, teachers should be excused from blame.
Some members of the teacher unions, however, expressed disappointment in the Regional Minister’s absence to receive their petition, despite her knowledge of the plight of teachers in the country as a teacher herself.
Story Filed By: Eric Annan