UPSA-UTAG also rejects suspension of strike

The University of Professional Studies Accra (UPSA) branch of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) has rejected the decision by the National Executive Committee (NEC) to suspend the strike.

One Hundred and Seven members of the UPSA-UTAG, out of the total of 170 members voted on Friday, February 25 to reject the suspension while 63 voted in favor.

Earlier, the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) chapter of UTAG also rejected the decision to suspend the strike making it the first member to do so.

At an emergency meeting at the campus of the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), UTAG’s NEC decided to suspend the strike for two weeks for negotiations for better conditions of service to resume.

The executives, however, left the decision to back their stance or otherwise to their members at the 15 public universities to vote on.

On Tuesday, February 22, the UEW chapter voted against the decision.

Branch President Dr. Pascal Kpodo says his members took the decision as a result of the government’s posture in the past regarding such agreements.

To him, the government cannot be trusted and they will continue to remain on strike until negotiations conclude.

“The reason why we are rejecting the decision has nothing to do with UTAG NEC,” Dr. Kpodo emphasized.

“Rather, it has to do with the way the government side has been treating our agreement of understanding over the period,” he said on TV3‘s News 360 on Tuesday, February 22.

“Now the members cannot trust the government side to live up to expectation.”

He said his branch has the right to reject the decision by NEC since all chapters were given five days to vote on the decision.

More so, he pointed out, decisions by the member chapters are taken while the negotiations continue till Friday, March 4.

“But our members are very skeptical about that happening that is why as far as the members are concerned, we will rather remain on strike until what they are promising us to come to pass.”

Meanwhile, the management of some universities has announced the resumption of their academic calendar following the decision of UTAG’s national executives.