UTAG begins nationwide strike
The National Executive Committee (NEC) of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) has directed its members nationwide to withdraw their teaching services from today in solidarity with their counterparts at the University of Education, Winneba (UEW).
“It is our firm belief that the issue at the UEW is an attack on academic freedom and thus affects all public universities in Ghana,” it said in a statement signed by its National President, Dr Harry K. Agbanu.
In response to the withdrawal of teaching services, Vice-Chancellors Ghana (VCG) has invited the national executive of UTAG to what it described as an emergency meeting in Accra today to discuss progress report on the UEW and the way forward with the strike.
According to the VCG, it respected the constitutional right of UTAG to embark on the industrial action but was concerned about the ramifications the action would have on the academic calendar.
It said the meeting would also find out if there were alternative means to resolve the issue.
UTAG
In its statement, UTAG gave a one-week ultimatum to all stakeholders to resolve the issue, indicating that the situation after the ultimatum would inform NEC’s decision to review its position at the upcoming UTAG Congress to be held on September 22, 2017.
The High Court in Winneba had, on July 14, 2017, ordered the Vice-Chancellor of the UEW, Professor Mawutor Avokeh, and the Finance Officer to step aside until a case brought against them before the court that the two were operating under the institution’s defunct governing council was resolved.
The UEW branch of UTAG has been on strike since July 2017 after the court’s directives.
The UTAG statement described the court directive as “an attack on academic freedom, and thus affects all public universities in Ghana.”
It, however, appealed to all its members to “diligently perform all other duties placed on them by their appointments”.
New council and Education Ministry accused
It accused the recently inaugurated Governing Council of the UEW of not showing interest in the issue, neither had it shown any seriousness in resolving it.
“The posturing of the Council Chairman has rather made matters worse by writing to the university lawyer to withdraw the whole appeal process by the university from the Appeals Court and the stay of execution of the injunction order issued by the High Court,” it said
The statement described the stance of the new Governing Council as a clear case of ill intention in pursuit of sabotaging the substantive vice-chancellor.
It went ahead to say that the imposition of an acting vice-chancellor on the UEW by the High Court, as against the UEW’s act and statutes, was an act considered as an element of attack on academic freedom.
Source: Graphic.com.gh
