Regional News of Monday, 27 July 2020

Source: Antwi boasiako John , Contrbutor

Unemployed Allied Health Professionals to picket at Finance and Health Ministries today

About 3,797 Allied Health are expected to take part in the picketing About 3,797 Allied Health are expected to take part in the picketing

About 3,797 Allied Health Professionals who are yet to be employed after completing their studies and national service will today Monday July 27, 2020 picket the Ministry of Health (MoH) to register their displeasure at the Ministry’s inability to employ them.

The 2017/2018 batches are made up of laboratory technicians, medical recorders, disease control officers, opticians and health information officers.

In a statement signed by their leader, Ebenezer Kojo Nkrumah "We would like to state emphatically that, the 2017/2018 batch of Allied health Professionals are still home. Negotiations for the release of financial clearance started 2017. It has been three years now and all efforts made have proved futile’’.

We are the first and last batch to be affected by scrapping of student’s allowance. The current government promised us immediate employment after our internship since we did not benefit from the trainee allowance but have not heeded to their promise’’, the statement said.

The release stressed "most of our members were deployed to voluntary to help in contact racing, sample collection, sensitization, among other duties during the emergence of this novel coronavirus pandemic (COVID 19) with the hope of receiving financial clearance, unfortunately, financial clearance has only been given to over 10,808 2017/2018 batch of nurses and midwives leaving out 3797 Allied Health Professionals 2017/2018 batch’’.

"our decision to picket is based on the professional bias, unfair, deceit and dehumanizing treatment the we have gone through for three years all in the quest for our financial clearance’’, it said.

"We intend to stay at the premises of MOHand MOF until we receive our financial clearance since it has been the norms that Graduate Allied Health Professionals have to picket before we are being given financial clearance’’, the aggrieve Allied Health Professionals added