Let’s unite and fight for Ghana’s future not only for better conditions of service – Gyampo to Organised labour
Political Science Lecturer at the University of Ghana, Professor Ransford Gyampo has said if the country’s Organised Labour does not force the Akufo-Addo-led government to do things right, then a new regime may use the deficiencies in government’s proposed Debt Exchange Programme in a way that may lead to more hardship on the citizenry.
The Political Science Lecturer is, therefore, calling Organised Labour to rise up and ensure government does the right thing by keeping it on its toes.
In a letter to Organised Labour ahead of preparations and meetings towards this year’s May Day celebrations, Professor Gyampo said: “Let us close our ranks and rise beyond the very needless and counter-productive Ghanaian style of partisan politics, that has plagued our efforts at national development since 1992.”
He reminded Organised Labour that, though it must not hate any government, if it fails to hit the Akufo-Addo-led administration to reduce its size, it cannot compel another regime to do same.
“We must not hate any regime but we must note that, if we don’t hit this government hard, and give it the needed ultimatum to reduce its Ministers to about 40, and collapse some other Ministries to create just about 15 of them, we won’t be able to hit another government harder, should there be regime change in the future.”
“This is something we must not be oblivious about,” the Political Science lecturer stressed.
Prof Gyampo noted that government cannot keep calling on Organised Labour to help it settle its debt through the various sacrifices when the Akufo-Addo administration itself has refused to sacrifice.
“We have the muscle to flex. We can shut down the public service as a way to compel government to be frugal and to sacrifice first. The call on us to help the government to settle its debts through various clandestine proposals about our pension must be rejected ab initio.
“There is no guarantee about the future of our pension if we accept the new proposal about our life savings and fail to get the government to do what is right today, in terms of getting the culture and practice of sacrifice ingrained in its psyche first. They cannot keep calling on us to always sacrifice while they refuse to do same. We the proletariats must torpedo the bogus sense of self-worth and importance by the bourgeoisies who feed on our taxes and refuse to properly account for the use of our money.”
Prof Gyampo also urged Organised Labour to fight for the future of the country, and not only for better Conditions of Service.
“Let us tell the government that, it is not about cutting down expenditure. It is about frugality and cutting down on waste. If we collapse ministries and create just about 15 of them; if we force them to lead the charge of public sacrifice; and if we compel them to put in place measures to prevent the current practice where we are always caught fetching water with basket, we would be able to adequately fund our Free SHS and cater for the well-being of workers and labour, and be left with adequate resources for development.
“It is not enough to gossip privately in expressing disappointment about the tenure of the current regime. We must man up and speak publicly in exercising our civic responsibility to force them to sit up to fix things now for the sake of tomorrow. Our fight must not always be for better Conditions of Service. Let us fight for the future of Ghana now, else we would have ourselves to blame tomorrow.”
“Individual academics and civil society leaders can be ignored. But if we work together as labour in a manner akin to what led to the formation of the British Labour Party, we cannot be ignored. Arise Labour!!!,” Professor Gyampo added.
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