As a concerned college of education student, I would like to by this opportunity to express my opinion regarding the indefinite industrial strike action by the College of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) and College of Education NON-Teaching Staff Association of Ghana (CENTSAG); Halting Academic procedures and its adverse effects on the ordinary teacher Trainee in college.

On behalf of myself and those who share the pain and sufferings of students in colleges of education going through in these hard times due to the strike action by the two major unions in colleges of education, I would like to state that we the ordinary teacher Trainee has suffered and continues to suffer as a result of these strike actions.

This has gone a wide way to affect our academic performance and well-being as students of this republic. How do we then concentrate on our books when hunger is killing us.? We have been starved for the past two weeks because of CENTSAG STRIKE and also no academic work has been going on till now. We don’t know when CETAG will come back.

There is a cliché in Akan which says that “when two elephants fight, it’s the grass that suffers” We want to tell the government that College of education students are SUFFERING!!! Always the students of the Republic of Ghana have to suffer the consequence of such strike actions.

We are reminding CETAG that we have recently been out of school because of COVID- 19, the Track system, and various distortions of the academic calendar which have gone a long way to affect the students. Systems are hard and students are willing to continue their education so they meet the requirement for graduating.

All these challenges have been there but we are back to school to face them amidst these economic hardships. They should reconsider so that the future of Ghanaians can be reassured through teacher education.

ln a statement by TTAG, the student body indicated that they disagree with the striking approach considering its effect on the students especially within the abnormal times we find ourselves in and the earlier obstruction of academic work by the global shutdown.

TTAG is working and ensuring that students in colleges of the republic are always on the receiving end when Lectures decide to go on strike when certain demands that the government might not have responded to. We are always at the receiving end so TTGA which is the mother body of all.

Teacher Trainees Are Suffering

students in colleges of education have represented us in a statement that government should as a matter of urgency ensure that the demands of CETAG are met.

We hope that as soon as possible, this strike goes off. This strike must be called off because we can't continue to be suffering always because of the government, lectures, and teachers thinking that they have some grievance so the students should suffer the consequence. We need education and it is our right. Government, in particular, must always ensure that students' rights are respected. If they cherish the students of Ghana, and that we are the future of this republic, then we unequivocally suggest the following:

1. Government must within the next few working days engage the Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) intending to address the ISSUES IN a manner that CETAG will be satisfied.

2. We ask the Government of Ghana and other stakeholders like the Fair Wages and Salary Commission to demonstrate good faith in its dealings with the unions IN the negotiation process. In its statement, CETAG blamed the stalled negotiation process on bad Faith consistently demonstrated by the government. As a government that trumpets quality education, we believe this should be the avenue for the government to achieve what it has always been preaching

3. Currently, most students are preparing for their end of Semester Examinations, and we believe this strike will have a negative toll on them psychologically and academically. It is against the backdrop of this that we plead with the government to act right. I want to add that the Teacher Trainees Association of Ghana (TTAG) has also called on both parties to resolve the matter at hand.

The Association has been a great mouthpiece for the ordinary teacher Trainee. I know trainees are their only business. It’s by this statement I would like to urge them (TTAG) to as a matter of urgency meet the ministry in charge of Education and the affiliate universities to have a conversation on the need to reconsider the dates scheduled for the end of Semester Examinations thus 2nd - 9th December 2022 of students and may even consider to let students go home and come back when the strike is over.
Teacher Trainees Are Suffering

0AJ
OPOKU AFRIFA JAMES
SIGNED
A CONCERNED STUDENT IN THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

Cc
THE MINISTER, MINISTRY OF EDUCATION.
TEACHER TRAINEES’ ASSOCIATION OF GHANA
ALL MEDIA HOUSES
ALL STUDENTS IN THE 46 COLLEGES OF EDU. IN GHANA

Source//sompaonline//Eric Murphy Asare