Govt is recklessly incompetent - Karbo

Former National Youth Organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Anthony Abayefa Karbo, has blamed the presidency for the ongoing strike by the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG).

According to him, if government had acted on the July 31 deadline issued by UTAG, the strike could have been avoided.

University teachers across the country went on strike to protest against unpaid 2012 Market Premium arrears, and book and research allowances.

On Thursday August 1, the Education Ministry paid the striking teachers their allowances totaling GHC29m, but the hope of they returning to the lecture rooms was dashed as UTAG maintained that until their book and research allowance are paid, they will remain on strike.

However, President John Dramani Mahama on Friday appealed to striking members of UTAG to call off their strike.

He has also asked the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission to conclude the negotiations on book and research allowances.

But speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme, Anthony Karbo bemoaned the knee jerk reaction of government "even when the problem stares them right in their face".

He intimated that typical of the Mahama-led government, it will wait until the problem get out of hand before it will act.

"The Mahama-led administration is recklessly incompetent; it is not proactive in tackling issues".

The NPP man found it intriguing how government will treat the UTAG strike without the urgency it deserves with two batches of students entering the university the same year.

Anthony Karbo described President Mahama’s call on UTAG to call off their strike as "needless".

"I think the president talks too much; he is behaving like a communications team member," he exclaimed.

Anthony Karbo said the striking teachers have legitimate rights to demand what is rightfully theirs and thus the earlier government addresses the issue the better for them.