TEACHER UNION IN OTI REGION CALLS ON GOVERNMENT TO SUSPENDED THE PRE-TERTIARY BILL

Tension is beginning to rise as the coalition of teacher unions under the Ghana Education Service (GES) says it will continue to resist the Pre-Tertiary Bill because of the lack of consultation.

There have been several calls by teacher unions in other regions asking government to kick against the Bill which they fear will see basic schools, Senior High Schools and Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) being managed by the District Assemblies, Regional Education Directorate and a Director-General independent of the Ghana Education Service.

Speaking to the press yesterday, some members of the coalition complained bitterly about how the new bill could disrupt their lives and career if government does not squash plans to pass the bill to law.

According to the coalition, the Bill only seeks to give more appointing powers to the political class to the detriment of quality education and the welfare of teachers.

The Volta Regional Chairman of Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), David Katah, said they are in solidarity with the view held by their national leaders with regards to the Bill.

“It is crystal clear that the Bill is harmful to the teaching profession. It is set out to destroy the management arrangement and further enhance the winner takes all agenda by the political class. We the teachers in the Volta and Oti Regions hereby declare that we stand in solidarity with our colleagues in the other regions to resist the passage of the Bill in its current form with all our might and strength. If we destroy the management body or GES, it is our heritage. We wish to send a strong signal that henceforth; we will not allow any appointment of non-teachers and educational workers as management over us. We wish to state again that the pre-tertiary bill should be suspended.”

Teacher Unions have raised concerns over some aspects of the bill which gives the Head of Local Government Service the power to appoint Heads and Staff of District Education as well as promote, transfer, discipline and dismiss staff of the District Education Unit.

 

The teacher unions; which include the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), and the Coalition of Concerned Teachers Ghana (CCT), had called on Parliament to suspend the deliberations on the Bill until all outstanding issues with the Ministry of Education were resolved.

 

Parliament, however, referred the Teacher Unions to the Education Ministry for further engagement.

Source: Citifmonline