You Can’t Employ New Teachers To Replace Those On Strik3 Ovèr Poor Condition-Apeak To GTEC
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Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Education Committee, Dr. Clement Abas Apaak, has expressed strong disapproval of the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission’s (GTEC) response to the ongoing Colleges of Education Teachers’ Association of Ghana (CETAG) strike.
He criticized GTEC for suggesting the recruitment of more tutors as a solution to the two-month impasse, rather than addressing the teachers’ grievances.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Top Story on August 16, Dr. Apaak described the government’s decision to hire new lecturers as an ill-advised move, which fails to resolve the underlying issues raised by CETAG. He urged the government to focus on meeting its obligations to the striking teachers instead.
“I think that this move is a very bad move; it ought to be withdrawn. Government must provide the needed resources to fulfill its commitments to the teachers and allow them to return to their duties,” Dr. Apaak emphasized.
He further questioned the practicality of GTEC’s plan to recruit 2,500 new lecturers, noting that there were no provisions in the 2024 budget or the Mid-Year Budget Review for such recruitment.
Dr. Apaak, who is also a lecturer, pointed out that the process of hiring teaching staff is neither quick nor feasible within the proposed timeframe.
“We know that we passed the 2024 budget, and we’ve seen the Finance Minister present the Mid-Year Review. There are no allocations or estimations to cater for the recruitment of 2,500 lecturers. This cannot happen within the next two to three months—I can tell you that with authority,” Dr. Apaak stated.
“The process of recruiting lecturers is not something that can be done within two weeks or even a month. Clearly, it is not feasible,” he added.
Earlier on Friday, GTEC announced that it had processed the top-up of research allowances for 44 of the 46 Colleges of Education, with the exceptions of McCoy and Dambai Colleges due to technical issues.
The Commission also revealed that it was seeking financial clearance from the Education Ministry to hire new teaching staff to help resume academic activities while negotiating with CETAG to resolve the strike.
However, Dr. Apaak argued that the suggestion of replacing CETAG members with new recruits was misplaced and counterproductive. He stressed that the focus should remain on negotiating with the teachers’ association to resolve their concerns.
CETAG’s demands include the payment of one month’s salary for additional duties performed in 2022, and the application of agreed allowances given to public university staff to qualified CETAG members.
Teachers in various colleges of education initiated the strike on June 14, demanding better working conditions and remuneration packages in response to the government’s delay in implementing the National Labour Commission’s Arbitral Award Orders and the negotiated service conditions.
