NUGS begs teacher unions to call off strike over new GES DG

Following the ongoing strike action by teacher unions over the appointment of Eric Nkansah as Director-General of the Ghana Education Service, the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) has urged teachers to call off the strike.

In a statement copied to AcademicWeek, NUGS said it appreciates the right of the unions to disagree with decisions by the government but it also believes that students must not be made to suffer the consequences of every impasse.

“We want to at this point call on our dear Teachers to reconsider their strike action and pursue other means of expressing their dissent, holding that the strike action turns students into victims of actions they have no control over,” it stated.

The Students Union continued that “as students, we do not want to go into the merits of the appointment of the Director General since we believe the laws and best practices especially, The Ghana Education Service Act clearly state the procedures and regulations of such appointments and hence reference should be made in such instances.”

In a related development, the Ghana Education Service has directed Heads of schools to keep schools open despite the ongoing strike action by teacher unions over the appointment of Eric Nkansah as Director-General of the Service.

In a statement copied to AcademicWeek, GES said it has directed all Heads of public Kindergarten and primary schools as well as Junior High Schools to mobilise and ensure the safety and well-being of the prospective students.

“Meanwhile, parents are advised to remain calm and be assured that the management is closely monitoring the situation and will advise on the way forward,” the Ghana Education Service (GES) stated in a press release.

GES’s directive comes after the pre-tertiary education teacher unions on November 4, 2022, declared a nationwide strike action following the government’s decision not to terminate the contract of Eric Nkansah as GES Director.

In a statement copied to AcademicWeek, the teachers said “we have decided to embark on a strike from November 4, 2022. We are informing the public that we are withdrawing our services in all pre-tertiary education institutions.”

With 17 Educationists appointed Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) since 1974 to date, the pre-tertiary unions say Dr Eric Nkansah with a banking background is not qualified to manage education in the country.

“It must be stated that the Director-General position is preserved for Educationists and has been occupied by Educationists since 1974 to date. 17 Director-Generals have been appointed to serve at GES,” the unions stated.