Deputy Finance Minister, Thomas Nyarko Ampem, has assured newly recruited teachers that their delayed salaries will be addressed in the upcoming national budget, which is scheduled to be presented to Parliament within the next 30 days.
Mr. Ampem gave the assurance on Tuesday, September 30, after receiving a petition from the aggrieved teachers at the Jubilee House. The group, made up of the 2022 batch of College of Education graduates and university-trained teachers, is demanding the payment of 13 and 9 months of salary arrears, respectively.
“The Finance Minister wants me to tell you that he sympathises with you. And that your predicament, your situation, has been brought to his attention,” Mr. Ampem told the teachers.
He explained that the Finance Minister had already briefed President John Mahama, who had given approval for provisions to be made in the next budget to clear the arrears.
“…In the next 30 days, the Finance Minister is going to Parliament to present the next budget. The Finance Minister is going to make provision for all of you to be paid. So, you should be very happy that your problem will be fixed. That is the good news that I have for you,” he said.
The protest, which began at Obra Spot near Kwame Nkrumah Circle, saw the teachers march to the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance before converging at the presidency to press home their demands.
Lead convener of the group, Simon Kofi Nartey, said the demonstration had become necessary after a September 23 deadline passed without any response from the authorities.
He stressed that the action was not only about their livelihoods but also about protecting the quality of education, which he argued is undermined when newly recruited teachers are unable to afford transportation, accommodation, and other basic needs.
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