General News of Saturday, 2 December 2006

Source: GNA

Reconsider decision to withhold October salaries

...of NAGRAT members

Awutu-Nankessim (C/R), Dec. 2, GNA- Nai Kwao Otuo V, member of the Awutu Traditional Council and chief of Awutu-Mankessim, has added his voice to the call on government to reconsider its decision to withhold the October salaries of graduate teachers who were on strike.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in an interview at Awutu-Mankessim, Nai Otuo said although the strike went against the Labour Law, government should reconsider its stand and tamper justice with mercy and pay the affected teachers their October salaries. "I personally feel that when this is done, we would be letting sleeping dogs to lie perpetually on the NAGRAT/Government impasse to avoid a revival of the strike action", Nai Otuo stated.

Nai Otuo cautioned citizenry to stop reading politics into the NAGRAT issue and other vital national issues so that 'collectively we can move the nation forward with minimum difficulty.'

He appealed to the leadership of NAGRAT and the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) to patch up their differences and come together to push through the grievances of teachers for better results. Nai Otuo endorsed calls by individuals and organizations for high salaries fort teachers and expressed the hope that government would abide by its pledge to provide teachers acceptable remunerations soon to encourage them to give off their best to promote education at all levels.