TEWU calls for peaceful elections

The Teachers and Educational Workers' Union (TEWU) of the Trades Union Congress Ghana has urged political actors to exhibit high level of tolerance for opposing views, ahead of the December elections.

This, the Union said, would help consolidate constitutional governance as the national peace, unity and stability cannot be sacrificed for violence.

A statement signed by Mr Mark Dankyira Korankye, the Acting General Secretary of TEWU, and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra, called on the various political groups to act with decorum in expressing divergent views on the Electoral Commission’s decision to compile a new Voters’ Register.

"We also urge the Electoral Commission that in trying to assert its independence, there should be room for consensus building to improve on the enviable gains the Commission has chalked for the past 27 years," it said.

The statement called on Ghanaians to be patriotic and avoid any act that would degenerate into violence and mar the upcoming Presidential and Parliamentary elections.

Touching on the educational sector, it commended government agencies in the sector for initiating proactive steps to address the payment of Critical Support to the remaining classes of its members.

"We call on stakeholders including the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, the ministries of Education, and Finance to fast track the necessary processes so that the remaining classes of TEWU members who are also qualified to enjoy the Critical Support will benefit from it soonest".

The statement commended the media for devoting considerable attention to issues of educational infrastructure to improve teaching and learning.

"TEWU is appealing to government and other philanthropists to, as a matter of urgency, make the necessary interventions to improve infrastructure in our educational institutions, especially in deprived rural communities and peri-urban areas".

It expressed worry over the health conditions of kitchen staff in some schools that continuously used fuel wood to cook, urging the authorities to safeguard their health by supplying those schools with LPG cooking facilities to improve their work.