GNAT gives govt deadline to sack new GES Director Eric Nkansah

The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has joined the national campaign for the appointment of Dr Eric Nkansah as the new Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) to be revoked by President Akufo-Addo

Describing Mr Eric’s appointment as unfortunate and untenable, the National Council of the Association of Teachers said the central government has up to November 4, 2022, to terminate the contract of the new Director-General

Citing why Dr Nkansah with a banking background cannot head the Ghana Education Service, the National Teachers said the position of the Director General of GES has been the preserve of educationists and must remain as such.

“Council found the replacement of Prof. Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa with Dr Eric Nkansah, the Banker, as both unfortunate and untenable. In the circumstance, therefore, Council calls for the revocation and subsequent appointment of an Educationist to occupy that office, by November 4, 2022,” GNAT stated in a communique sighted by AcademicWeek.

The leadership of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) also said it is against the one-year contract extension of Mr Anthony Boateng as the Deputy Director-General of the Ghana Education Service.

“We thereby sound this note of caution, that we would vehemently and vigorously resist any attempt to bring Anthony Boateng back into the system, and that the consequences of any such attempt may be too dire to handle,” it noted.

Meanwhile, the Minister for Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum has expressed confident Dr Eric Nkansah can manage the affairs of the Ghana Education Service with the support of teacher unions and stakeholders in the education sector.

“For those that may still be doubting the qualification and diverse experience the new Director brings to the GES: “he has taught in basic schools, he has taught in secondary schools, Geography, contrary to what you heard

Nkansah at a point went into banking but soon returned to academia to take up a teaching job that kept him at the Kumasi Technical University for over a decade until his appointment at the Ministry of Education two years ago

Like some teachers, he left to go and do some banking. He got bored with banking and went to the university to teach, and has taught for over ten years at the Kumasi Technical University,” he said at a conference of Directors of Education.