Strikes and their impacts on the nation

As a patriotic citizen, one will definitely be sad with the persistent labour agitations that have enveloped the country in the most sensitive sectors of the Ghanaian economy, namely the health and education sectors. These definitely have negative consequences to the country. Many of us have looked at these strikes with legal eyes as well as humanitarian lens. Many of these strikes have been christened as illegal by certain individuals and groups. The doctors who are deemed to be categorized under people who render essential services and hence not supposed to embark on strike actions have often defied whatever laws that have made them such. And this is where one would ask, are the doctors really aware of this important tag? If they are, then why the persistent strike actions? And if they are not, what could possibly be the course of the ignorance? The Government Pharmacists on the other hand, embarked on a strike action to press home their demands a few months ago. Yet it was another “illegal” strike action as alleged by the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission. So one question that will be asked by every concerned citizen is why such people whose education has been heavily subsidized by the tax payers money, will turn their back on the innocent tax payers at times when their services are needed most. The least said about the education sector, the better. We are now living in a modified animal farm where the poor tax payers money are used to subsidized the education of the children of the political and influential class. Yes, it is so; the children of this class get to attend the best Senior High Schools where they have all the facilities for learning. They come out with the good grades and get the creamy programmes at the various universities and even if they do not meet the grades for such creamy programmes, their money gets them there in the name of “fee paying”. It came to a point when all teachers in the country virtually went on strike, GNAT, GRASAG, POTAG and then UTAG, we are almost there again. The effects of these strikes are undoubtedly long lasting. The teachers in basic schools are not able to finish their syllabuses and they get to the Senior High School half baked and they are confronted with the same issue of strike and are not able to get the required knowledge impacted on them. It doesn’t end there; they get into the polytechnic or university and complete the process of partial education there because of the persistent strikes. And these are the products we send out into the job markets and streets and what happen afterwards? Your guess is as good as mine. It is heartbreaking that the laws are not working in this regard. People embark on illegal strike for two to three weeks and yet at the end of the month, they walk out of the various banks beaming with smiles because not a pesewa is taken from their salary. This is real manner from heaven, getting paid without any work done. It is high time someone stood up for the innocent poor in society. It is absolutely unfair, illegal and unethical to use the life of patients and innocent school children as a bargaining chip by labour unions. For how long are we going to suffer this? It is rather unfortunate that many of our politicians are not directly affected by these strike actions. Their children will attend the best private schools from the basic to the tertiary level in Ghana that is on the unfortunate event that they are not schooling abroad. The politicians have personal doctors who will attend to them, or even have links with these same public doctors whom they can easily fall on in times of danger. The same cannot be said about the ordinary poor trader located in Ullo, Tolon, or fisherman in our deprived fishing communities, whose taxes are used to pay all these public workers. Government continues to complain of increase wage bill and yet will not stamp its feet down to solve it. As has been said, some of our institutions of state have let us down. The system is being abused and we are not getting the required productivity from our public servants. It is time we solve all these labour problems before they generate into something else. The institutions must be seen to be working appropriately in order to get the desired results. They went on strike because of their salaries, later to allowances and now pension fund. What will be next? Oh Mother Ghana!!! Let’s however appreciate the works and efforts of those who defy such strike actions of their colleagues and impact knowledge or deliver health care services to the ordinary Ghanaians out there. These Ghanaians are seeing your deeds. It is your actions that are keeping this country alive.

By: ROGER Y. ZOLKO-ERE Wa rogerzolkoere@yahoo.com 0207911886 / 0577551053