President of the Graduate Students Association of Ghana (GRASAG), Heartwill Selassie Tamakloe has expressed disappointment at the government for forcing the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) back into the classroom.
She says GRASAG was expecting a resolution between UTAG and the government “and now we have seen no resolution. Now we are in the middle of nowhere and we are a little disappointed in gov’t.”
According to her, GRASAG’s disappointment in government is premised on the fact that the strike action did not just happen. “Six (6) months ago lecturers embarked on strike action and we pleaded with them to go back to the classroom for the completion of our academic year. We also pleaded with gov’t to meet their demands and after six (6) months we face the same situation. We are disappointed in gov’t.”
Speaking to Samuel Eshun on the Happy Morning show, the GRASAG president describing the government as a mother body, called on it to consider students who are suffering from frequent strike actions and reconsider its stance, hence meeting the needs of UTAG.
Revealing students have been agitated with the strike action, she noted, “students are agitated because school has reopened but they have not been to lectures and don’t know how or what the academic year will be like. Foreign students are agitated because they have a temporal residency permit and are frustrated.”
The Labour Division of the Accra High Court on Tuesday granted an interlocutory injunction against the industrial action by the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG).
This follows an appeal by the National Labour Commission (NLC) for an interlocutory injunction to halt the industrial action by UTAG.
The NLC dragged UTAG to court after attempts to have UTAG call off its strike failed.
The court on two occasions ordered both parties to adopt an out-of-court settlement, but the engagements ended inconclusively.
