Hundreds of teachers from the teachers? special group, a coalition of Teachers demonstrated on the streets of Kumasi in the Ashanti Region to hammer on their demands for the resignation of the corrupt and selfish NAGRAT and GNAT executives.
The group, which demonstrated in the wake of recent agitations by teachers over the uncertainties in their salaries, rejected the 15 percent allowance offered the striking teachers by the government last two weeks BUT was accepted by the hypocrite and corrupt executives of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT)and Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT).
The coalition says the 15 percent teacher retention premium offered by the government to end their strike is cheating, inadequate and a slap on their faces which cannot provide the teachers with any significant improvement in their standard of living.The Teachers accused their leaders of ?gross incompetence, corruption and selfish" in negotiating for better conditions of service in respect of the implementation of the SINGLE SPINE Pay Policy.
GNAT And NAGRAT executives are said to lack transparency in the management of the unions? funds, they are arrogant and have a useless, bogus and outmoded constitution which protects almost only the "selfish interests" of the leaders (GNAT And NAGRAT) but to the detriment of it's members.
The Teachers have therefore threatened to impeach the executives or break away from them if they fail to resign. Prior to their gigantic rally, the group are said to have embarked on several peaceful marches.
According to a spokesperson for the coalition, the demonstration was very successful with over 8,000 of its members mostly from the Ashanti Region and across the country.
They praised the police in Kumasi for offering them the needed support in a more professional manner, unlike what transpired in Accra recently when the police fired tear gas to disperse demonstrating teachers.
A correspondent of a Kumasi based Radio station, City FM, Betty Ohemaa Agyemang said the march was peaceful. A petition was later presented to the Ashanti Regional Director of Education.
He said as part of the options, the Coalition has coordinated series of demonstrations to take place in the other nine regions of the country.
The corrupt Leaders of GNAT and NAGRAT who showed their weakness and selfishness called the bluff of the coalition, saying they have no right to call for their resignation urging the group to use legal means to get their concerns addressed.
I hope the Teachers will no longer dance to the whistle of the corrupt, selfish and useless GNAT and NAGRAT executives.
FRANCIS TAWIAH (Duisburg - Germany)
