World Teachers' Day: A reflection on the affairs of the Ghanaian teacher

As today marks world teachers' day, I swiftly seized the opportunity to succinctly weave some words together, elucidating the real state of teachers in Ghana.

Indeed, today marks the day for celebration, merry making and jollification by the teachers across the length and breadth of the world, unfortunately the Ghanaian teacher is bedevilled with myriad of life threatening challenges to the extent that they can't pretend to join in the jollification of this day of theirs.

What is it about the Ghanaian teacher that I am referring to? First and
foremost, teachers' dignity in this part of the world is betrayed and corrupted at the profit of a consumerist society. As I speak, majority of Ghanaian teachers have not been paid their September salaries. So how can they join in the celebration of this day? Today is rather a day of moaning for most Ghanaian teachers.

For evidentiary purposes, it is on records that over 2500 teachers on study leave with pay on the campuses of the various universities in the country have not had their pay. The causes of the non-payment cannot be traced. This is how porous and dysfunctional our systems are! Are our leaders responsible at all? How can such a problem emerged without the leaders knowing the root cause? Yes! Indeed the time has come for us to use our eagle-eye ball pens to expose the rots in our systems so that lasting remedies can be meted out to curtail this virulent epidemic of leadership crisis.

Now, the affected teachers are wallowing in abject hardship and this makes it difficult for them to get a square meal for their families. You can't tell me that they don't plan for their lives with their monthly salaries. That is completely out of place. Common sense should tell you that a new academic year has just began and they have used their monies to pay their wards or siblings' fees.

Let me be quick to add that the high cost of living that characterizes the country is unbearable. Fuel prices keeps increasing astronomically and that directly and indirectly affect and determine the price of goods and services. This makes it practically impossible for one to save enough for some of these unforeseen events.

It is indeed very sad that most teachers in Ghana have nothing to rejoice over in commemoration of this day. Why should it be so? Is it not over politicization of issues? Hmmmmm! That reminds me of some insults I received from some cheap political points scorers in my unrepentant quest to unearth the odds going on in this country presently.

I recalled raising the issue of non-payment of teachers salary in an article I published on Ghanaweb on 2nd October, 2017 and some political hoodlums insulted and even asked whether I lived in Ghana because they didn't know that some teachers were did not receive their September salaries. But thank God; the truth will invariably vindicate me. The primitive politics most people do in Ghana is the very foundation for so many failures.

In all sincerity, teaching in Ghana is not yet a profession and it will take many years before it assume that status. I am not a prophet of doom, though. It is pathetically interesting to note that teaching in Ghana is the least respected job hence it has radically been reduced to a stepping stone for virtually all the unemployed to spring on to get to their target destinations.

I guess it sounds funny, right? That is the reality on the grounds though.

Shockingly, my learned readers, teachers in Ghana have been raped of their rights and power. Why I say so, one may asked. I said so because Human Rights Laws have given all the rights including the teachers' rights to students without any recourse to the Ghanaian culture of discipline. This is very sickening! No wonder Ghana is speedily deteriorating in terms of the discipline of Ghanaians nowadays.

I must make my position known here that I am not an anti-modernist but our blind imitation of the western world is dragging our beloved country into the mud. In fact, this is another topic that will be expatiated in my next article. Ghana as a country has a story of Her origin cum customs. It is a clear fact that our customs can never be relegated and any attempt made by anyone to underrate our customs will always have the country dragging Her feet to substantially develop. No wonder Ghana is still backward development wise, despites Her well endowment with all the resources.

Ladies and gentlemen, what we must know as a people in this country is that the failure of a man is his inability to remember where he is coming from.

It worthy to note that Ghana can only make a monumental progress if teachers are accorded the necessary support. The blatant disregard of teachers in this country will forever retard the country's progress.

Let me quickly add that over politicization of issues in this country will also impede development.

I will end here by wishing all teachers a better world teachers' day in 2018.

derbieraphael@yahoo.com

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