President Mahama has described as hypocritical the stance taken by the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) on the issue of teacher and nurses’ trainee allowance. The president said he has incontrovertible evidence that prior to the exit of the NPP in 2008 they had plans of rolling out the same policy to scrap allowances of teacher and nurses due to similar reasons given by his administration.
He revealed this in an interview with the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation’s Sunrise FM in Koforidua as part of his tour of the Eastern Region.
Quoting from a 9th June 2008 document entitled “Guidelines for the preparation of the 2009/11 plans and budget” from the health ministry, the president Mahama said” the payment of wages for 2009 was going to be difficult and that trainee allowances to new entrants to the diploma programs in the various training institutions (that is the nurses training institutions) will be abolished, allowances to continuing students in the diploma program will also be phased out. All students will be encouraged to seek funding under the students loans scheme. This is the NPP government for you. Today this is the same party turns around to say that we are wicked to have removed trainee allowance.
He also quoted some sections of a letter from the finance ministry signed by the minister Mr. Kojo Baah Wiredu, in the same year to authenticate his claim. The president said “it is important for Ghanaians to know the NPP cannot be trusted when it comes to making promises and fulfilling it. He also lambasted the party for their determination to deceive Ghanaians just because they want to win power at all cost”
"The duplicity of the NPP is so appalling. History is a very important subject. You must always remember your past so that it guides you into the future and it looks like the NPP has forgotten its past completely. And because of opportunism of wanting to win political you just come make criticism highfalutin promises that you yourself in the past you were kicking against”
The President John Mahama urged Ghanaians to dismiss the rumors it has backtracked on its decision to scrap teacher trainee allowances.
He said the decision to scrap allowances for teachers and nurses was one that was borne out of a principle the government does not intend to betray. “In life one must live by principles or else it’s not worth living”
Government scrapped teacher trainee allowance in 2014 in a move that was met with stiff opposition from trainee teachers who went as far as demonstrations to compel government to reintroduce the allowances.
Government explained that the policy of trainee allowances was to be replaced by a student loan scheme which was available for all degree awarding institutions.
The decision according to government was also to allow an increase in the number of trainees admitted into various training colleges in the country.
Teacher trainees subsequently vowed to vote against the NDC government if it failed to restore the payment of their allowances before the 2016 general elections.
On the other hand, the Flag bearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo, on his recent campaign tour of the Northern Region promised that he will restore the allowance should he win power.
Since the withdrawal, the government has been praising itself for taking a prudent decision which resulted in an exponential growth in enrollment figures at nursing and teacher training schools across the country, thereby expanding access nursing and teacher training.
The opposition New Patriotic Party has, however, insisted that the decision is senseless and imposed needless hardships on students and parents.
Touching on the issue of unemployment the President said that employment figures indicate that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has employed an unprecedented number of teachers and nurses in the country.
According to him, “from 2009 till date, this government has employed 78, 000 teachers – unprecedented – the highest number in the history of the country. From 2013, when I became president, we have employed 23,000 nurses – unprecedented – the highest number ever in the history of this country”.
For him, the facts do not support criticisms that his government has failed to provide jobs for teachers and nurses.
The removal of training allowances for teachers and nurses has also been a source of huge controversy. The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has constantly argued that the Mahama administration does not have the interest of nurses and teachers at heart.
However, Mr Mahama insisted that government is doing its best to provide the best for teachers and nur
The citizen’s mail has however laid hands on copies of the said documents the president read copiously from.
Source: The Citizen's Mail
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so mr president wen will u lift e embargo so that we e teachers in e hse will b recruited.this tin will remove u oo cos the youth are more dan dos u gve cars to
No there is something wrong with Mr Dramani Mahama. He has been so inconsistent with many issues. You and your appointees boasted for implementing this fee cut to increase intakes to the Nursing Training and Teaching Training Institutes. You gave a personal experience of some one informing you of how this your policy has helped him. You never mentioned it was NPP that suggested this lie you told. Again you swore heaven and earth not to consider anything of given back the allowance to the Nurses even if it will cause your re-election to the presidency. Now somebody said he will reinstate this allowance and now you turned 360 degrees to restore it. You went ahead given instructions to the Finance Minister to pay the nurses GHC 150 instead of GHC400 these poor students requested. They say they will not accept this money. You have therefore exhausted all your defences. If you were to be w1se and somebody who really thinks, the only defence available to you is to restore the allowance in full and let matters die. What is the point of exposing your inc0mpetence by sitting in a radio show and telling everybody that the NPP initiated this move. Was it a w1se move the NPP made? If that is so, go ahead and acknowledge to the citizenry what NPP has done. They say when the gods want to kill the f00l (John Mahama) they make them mad first. Am seriously disappointed in this gentleman President of Ghana who has being touted as a communication expert.
NPP proposed single spine u implemented and took the credit. They secured loan for Tamale hospital u built and took the credit. If it is true there is a document to that effect, NPP might have listened to to the cries of the teachers and stopped. Take the blame, pls.
So this man think we all don't reason. You have taken a decision that's having an adverse effect on your government so you plan to robe in the NPP. We are wise enough to understand your diabolics. Are you not the same person who indicated at the UCC campus that this decision is irreversible even if it would effect you politically. This tell me not to trust you.
Mr President Hmmmmmmm
Hypocrite
if you said you saw a document to the fact that the NPP was going to withdraw the allowance. The question is that, did they do it? The fact that Kufuor considered it does not mean Nana Addo will consider it. We are in different times. People are suffering. NDC people keep asking why the NPP did not build factories when they were in power for 8 years but the NDC need to be asking themselves the same question. NDC has ruled Ghana for 27years, what have they to show for it? Every NDC government is tighten your belt government while they create, loot and share.
i'm a driver from accra to aflao i have been voting for NDC for years now but i'm still feel pain inside me. one day i leanrt the NDC people are wicked to us Voltarians. NDC are building a big market for kumasi people we don't have one nice road to order region we don't have one building a big mensions to order region we don't have one so many things to order region we don't have one we have form a group called eweland we about 20 people we have beeb taking for granted too much NDC please this time for give us we will vote you ou
Bring those documents for us to see, so why did u decide to pay that of the nurses if not for votes, JM infact twaso wai na yabr3 mo
HAHAHAHA HAHAHAHA HAHAHAHA. Talk is cheap. Failure everywhere. deception all the time. you are struggling to eat back your words. cant you sacrifice your job for removing the allowance?