GIJ SRC President, Ishmael Nii Lante Lamptey
• UTAG has embarked on a national strike
• All university teachers have withdrawn their services starting August 2
• SRC Prez of GIJ has noted that the strike action will affect students
All university lecturers have been directed by the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) to withdraw their services including teaching, marking of examination scripts, invigilation as well as processing of results in the various campus until further notice.
The strike action which commenced on August 2, 2021, has left students stranded in various institutions as there is no form of teaching.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with GhanaWeb, the President of the Ghana Institute of Journalism’s Student Representative Council, Ishmael Nii Lante Lamptey, explained that students will be hard hit by the current situation.
He has therefore called on the government to as a matter of urgency address the concerns of the university teachers.
“Always the students of the Republic of Ghana have to suffer the consequence of such strike actions. We are reminding UTAG that we’ve recently been out of school because of COVID-19. 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. We’ve paid our facility user fees and they are going on strike, they should reconsider so that the future of Ghanaians can be reassured.
“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 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 student’s rights are respected. If they really cherish students of Ghana, that we are the future of this republic, then government must as a matter of urgency ensure that the demands of UTAG are met so that students can enjoy their academics,” Mr Lamptey told GhanaWeb in an interview on August 3. He added that the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) have also called on both parties to resolve the matter at hand.
In a statement by NUGS, the student body indicated that they “disagree with the strike approach considering its effect on students, especially within the abnormal times we find ourselves in and the earlier obstruction of academic work by the global shutdown.” “NUGS is working and ensuring that students of the republic who are always on the receiving end when lectures decide to go on strike when certain demands that government might not have responded to… we are always at the receiving end so NUGS which is the mother body of all Universities has represented us in a statement that government should as a matter of urgency ensure that the demands of UTAG are met,” Ishmael Nii Lante Lamptey added.
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