By Ernest Bako WUBONTO
The Campaign Against Privatisation and Commercialisation of Education (CAPCOE) and its partners have expressed worry over the Ghana Education Service’s (GES) denial of promotion to Principal Superintendent (PS) rank for teachers who completed the three-semester degree top-up programme at the University of Cape Coast.
The CAPCOE explained that prior to the upgrade of Colleges of Education (CoE) to degree-awarding institutions, teacher unions and GES agreed that in-service teachers with diplomas could undertake degree programmes to meet new employment requirements.
It was also agreed that teachers returning from further studies would be promoted to Principal Superintendent, which is the entry point for degree holders in GES-approved courses.
However, despite completing their degree programmes and receiving certificates, District, Municipal and Metropolitan Directors of Education are denying these teachers’ requests for promotion to Principal Superintendent.
CAPOE maintained that this is particularly concerning as GES has opened recruitment for four-year degree graduates from Colleges of Education, who will be placed on the same PS rank, effectively leapfrogging their in-service colleagues.
Convener of CAPCOE, Richard Kwashie Kovey, lamented that this development is unfortunate and unfair, as it undermines the passion and dedication of teachers who have worked under challenging conditions for years.
“Ghana Education Service recently opened the portal for recruitment of the first batch of four-year degree graduates from Colleges of Education into GES. Surprisingly, these recruits would be placed on the rank of PS, which automatically put them ahead of the in-service colleagues who graduated with the same qualification in 2023 and are awaiting upgrading.
“This is a clear breach of the agreement between GES and teacher unions. This development tends to kill the passion and the zeal these teachers worked with all these years under very deplorable conditions. The GES must honour its obligation to the affected teachers under the agreement,” he said.
Key demands
The CAPCOE has urged the GES to immediately promote all affected teachers. “We want the GES to direct its directors of education in the various municipal, metropolitan and districts to automatically promote teachers who completed the three-semester top-up programme to Principal Superintendent rank immediately,” CAPCOE demanded.
The coalition also urged the GES to prioritise in-service teachers’ promotions over new entrants to maintain seniority and fairness.
Furthermore, it demands transparency, urging the GES to provide clear guidelines on promotion procedures to prevent future disputes or ambiguity.
CAPCOE urges GES to honour its obligations and address this injustice to prevent demotivation among teachers. “We request that the list of affected teachers be collated and promoted accordingly!”
