GRASAG assures students lecturers would soon call off strike…

Anxious students of the University of Education Winneba, have been assured the strike action by lecturers would be over by the time they report back from vacation.

Student leaders, who had been engaging management of the university, in a statement issued prior to a second hearing of a law suit entangling the school last week, expressed concern and regret about the turn of events and its possible impact on academic work and administrative duties even though school was to resume on September 2 2017. However, sand-witch students were expected on campus on the 15^th of July 2017.

Authorities of the university have since reopened the facility which was closed down following what was seen as a misinterpretation of the court order which barred the Vice Chancellor and the Finance Officer from functioning as such. But that could not shove the anxiety from campus as UTAG is the umbrella body for the lecturers declared a strike and announced it was filling a joint suit to challenge the reliefs sought by the plaintiff.

In the substantive case, former Assemblyman of Donkoryiem, Supi Kofi Kwayera is questioning the legality of the university’s governing council whose mandatory four year term expired in 2013.

Among other reliefs, if granted by the court, both students [estimated 6,000] and faculty members may lose their certificates, appointments and in some cases promotions.

These developments had raised anxiety among some students; but the President of the Graduates Students Association of Ghana (GRASAG), UEW, Stephen Osei Akyiaw told XYZ News’ Joe Bright Nyarko the impasse is entirely a university issue but he did not foresee the strike by the lecturers travelling far.

When asked what the student body would do in the event the strike was prolonged, Mr. Akyiaw affirmed that: “At least every time when some of these issues are to come up, the students are also called into some of those negotiations…but for what I  know it hasn’t gotten to that extent”.

Credit: myxyzonline.com