The Deputy Secretary of National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Michael Ayureboya has opposed the disclosure by the Technical Adviser at the Finance Ministry, Samuel Nii Noi Ashong asking Ghanaian Public servants to lower their expectations for salary increment.
According to him, this revelation can not be possible because Government has not had any consultations on the subject matter with employees, therefore such critical decision can not be taken by the Finance Ministry.
Speaking on ‘DayBreak Upper East’ programme on A1 Radio, Mr. Ayureba said, “If the Financial Advisor at the Ministry of Finance had indicated that there will not be salary increment, we will be disappointed because that’s not the way to go. Such matters are not discussed like that. We have to meet and for government to indicate and make us appreciate the situation at hand. If we are convinced by their statements and the available documents they would put before us for scrutiny, we will agree at a certain percentage or we agree if at all they say there can’t be any increment. We may agree if we are convinced. But this hasn’t happened”.
He said, “Generally, Covid-19 has slowed down things, things are not going the way they should go, so we agree but no body should use that opportunity to fool us into thinking that we are going to accept anything they [Government] say. I assure you, we will not.”
It could be recalled that, the the Technical Adviser at the Ministry of Finance during a discussion on the 2021 budget organized by the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) disclosed that Public Sector workers looking forward to a huge wage increment will not get it because there is no money to meet such demands and this situation is likely to persist until 2024. He said, this is as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on the economy.
However, Mr. Ayureboya says he doesn’t understand why government can make such a conclusive statement about salary without consulting Public Sector workers under the umbrella of Trade Union Congress (TUC).
Source: A1Radioonline.com|101.1MHZ| James Nana Tsiquaye|Ghana
