The Teacher Training Association of Ghana (TTAG) has given government a two day ultimatum to with immediate effect pay their feeding grants which has been in arrears or face their wrath.
At a press conference today [Wednesday] TTAG expressed its displeasure at government for failing to pay their feeding grants to the various colleges of education.
According to TTAG, government is on record to have offered to take full charge of the feeding fee component of school fees after the ‘’unpopular cancelling of the allowance which used to cushion trainees through the program and beyond.’’
Acting President of TTAG Apam Jonathan at the press conference lambasted government for creating an impression in the public that it feeds teacher trainees three times daily yet, it has not paid their feeding grants for two semesters.
He also took a swipe at the Vice President, Paa Kwesi Amissah Arthur who at campaign tour in the Central region recently announced that, an amount of GHC 50 million has been paid to cater for their grant when in actual fact, the claims were “false”.
He said, they have followed through every appropriate institution to address their concerns but their efforts have not yielded any positive result.
They also took exceptions at the payment of the abated allowances for nursing trainees on table and when teacher trainees were struggling to pay their fees.
“Whiles our colleagues in the nursing colleges have been paid allowances on table top, teacher trainees struggle to pay fees that has even been bloated due to the component of the feeding fee. We hear the President everyday as he talks about equity. Where I the equity then? We humbly say with no disrespect that the President has to come again on his description of equity. We want to put on record that the government owes trainees two semester arrears of the feeding fee and we are expecting exactly that any less will not be accepted.’’
TTAG he said want government to come out clearly to inform all trainees whether the grant has been released or not.
Another issue they touched on was what they referred to as ‘’Misfacts on Colleges Certificates (Diploma and Degree).
He said, TTAG ‘’is not happy with government’s lack of facts and inattentiveness taking due cognizance of the teacher trainees welfare.
He said, the claim that government t has upgraded their status to tertiary level where a degree was awarded after course was false and an error.
The continuous claims by government and President Mahama TTAG noted affirms the assertions that government does not take teacher education serious.
They also faulted the Ministry of Education for failing to brief the president that teacher trainees are awarded diploma certificates and not degree as stated by him [Mahama].
The Acting President also touched the ‘’hardship’’ newly trained teachers go through ‘’in the name of serving the country.’’
‘’It is sad to say that accommodation, feeding, transportation, provision of teaching and learning materials as well as all other expenses were their [trained teachers] responsibility…’’
The amount given to students who are able to access the Students Loan cannot cater for even a quarter of trainees school fees not a alone other important educational materials with matters relating to teacher trainees and must stop outright, respectfully. . We are tempted to say that government is exhibiting a sense of hypocrisy with matters relating to teacher trainees…’’
Apam Jonathan stressed that, ‘’we want charge government that hopefully by close of this week (25TH November 2016, the suppose feeding grant released must hit the accounts of the 38 Colleges of Education of face the wrath of the over 50, 000 trainees of TTAG.’ We also want to be enrolled on the National Service Scheme if indeed we are tertiary students and degree students as the president has claimed.’’
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