The Secretary-General of the Trades Congress (TUC), Kwasi Adu-Amankwah, says the union will apply all democratic means to ensure that those who have the mandate to govern the country do so in the interest of the people they represent.

Consequently, he has urged members of the union to rededicate themselves to championing the cause of trade unionism and also get themselves informed of what is happening nationally and internationally.

Mr Adu-Amankwah was speaking to members of the Upper East Regional Council of Labour at Bolgatanga at the weekend. He said: “We need to make sure that those to whom we have entrusted our mandate listen to us in making policy choices.”

However, he advised that members of the TUC should, in the first place, study hard and be informed of the policy choices of the government and understand them, so they will be able to provide meaningful inputs.

He said even though every government has its policy choices, the people need to understand and appreciate those choices, and where necessary, offer their suggestions, adding that as human beings, we have an option to direct what the government does.

Mr Adu-Amankwah advised the members to reorganise so that by their great numbers their voice could be heard by the authorities.

He said the situation where only a few of the members are seen to be in the helm of affairs is unacceptable because it is through the collective responsibility of all that the union can thrive, saying, “each of us has a responsibility in building the union into a formidable one”.

According to the TUC boss, the leadership of the union relies solely on members at the grass roots, whom he described as intermediaries, for any national action.

He said it is in this vein that the union intends to open offices at the district levels where members can meet to interact and study materials from the national headquarters.

“We have a long way to go in ensuring that the lives of our people are improved, he stressed.

Mr Adu-Amankwah commended all activists of the TUC for their contributions towards the survival of the union so far, but declared, “we need not be complacent at this stage at all”.

The Upper East Regional Secretary of the TUC, Alhaji Abdulai Bawa, in his report, appealed to the leadership of the union to release funds towards the early completion of the regional secretariat offices.

He further appealed for the provision of a computer and accessories for the Regional Secretariat to enable the office to conform to modern trends of office work.

The Regional Chairman of the union, Mr Martin Pawudi, urged the members to stand very firm in order to face the numerous challenges that confront them.