Executives of TUTAG and Dr Keelson Solomon (middle) addressing the press in Sunyani
Technical University Teachers Association of Ghana (TUTAG) at the end of its 36th Delegate Congress in Sunyani in the Bono Region has threatened to go on strike at the end of August if government fails to migrate them onto the Public University Salary Structure.
At a press conference in Sunyani, the association said three years after polytechnics were converted into universities, all efforts to have the issue resolved have failed, for which reason it will not entertain any further delay.
Chairman of the association, Dr. Solomon Keelson, said, “TUTAG has been cooperative and patient for far too long.”
He said after the Technical University Act, Act 922, 2016, which converted eight polytechnics into technical universities technical universities lecturers became part of public universities and could not fathom why that had not been done.
“Having complied with all conditions set out and the timelines proposed for migration of TUTAG members onto the public university salary structure, we are yet to be migrated three years down the line. What is worse is the continuous refusal of authorities to give us a specific date for the completion of the migration,” he said.
According to him, the association had written several letters to relevant bodies like the Ministry of Education (MOE), the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE) and the Fair Wages and Salary Commission (FWSC) to give a specific date for migration but all had fallen on deaf ears.
He said auditing of over 2,000 lecturers had been done and those who were not qualified academically to lecture in the technical universities were given three years to upgrade themselves so that those who are qualified would be migrated onto the new structure.
Dr. Keelson also urged the government to, as a matter of urgency, convert the remaining two polytechnics – Wa and Bolgatanga – into technical universities after Act 922, 2016, was amended to Act 974, 2018, to convert them into technical universities.
danielyaodayee@yahoo.com
FROM Daniel Y Dayee, Sunyani