NAGRAT Honours Past Leaders

Past national executives and regional chairmen of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) have been honoured for their various roles in the development of the association.

They are: Mr Kwame Alorvi, former President; Mr Munkaila King Zakari, former General Secretary; Obrumakoma Dotse, former Financial Secretary; Ms Beatrice Arhin, former Treasurer; Mr Christian Addai-Poku, former Vice-President; Mr Stanislaus P. Nabome, former Deputy General Secretary and Ms Marjorie Affenyi, formerly in charge of Publicity and Organising Secretary.

Those honoured were presented with various cash amounts and plaques.

Speaking at the ceremony, the General Secretary of NAGRAT, Mr Stanislus P. Nabome, said during the six-year term of service of the past officers, “the association witnessed tremendous growth in membership, improvement in infrastructure, expansion in our international networking, better collaboration with other unions and enhancement in the conditions of service for teachers within the Ghana Education Service”.

He said under the leadership of Mr Kwami Alorvi the association went through thick and thin to move it from a marginalised position to one of the glowing recognised and respected unions within and beyond the boarders of Ghana.

“As a team they initiated novelties into the operations of the association. One of the remarkable achievements of the officers is the establishment of the NAGRAT Auto Scheme. This scheme has so far availed over 700 teachers personal means of transport,” he said.

Mr Nabome listed another memorable achievement as the institution of the NAGRAT Fund, which would be dovetailed into the National Pension Scheme.

The formation of the Ladies of Excellence, the ladies wing of NAGRAT, he said, was another significant milestones.

He said NAGRAT acknowledged the torrid times its former leaders walked the association through, adding that “they engaged in difficult negotiations, organised industrial actions and incurred the displeasure of many whose line of thinking runs contrary to ours”.

Mr Nabome announced that at the just-ended Education International Africa Regional Conference, the President of NAGRAT, Mr Christian Addai-Poku, was elected to the 14-member Executive Committee for Africa.

On the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS), he said, the association was not only interested in the mere implementation of the salary structure but its proper and timeous implementation as well.

“Rumours are rife that teachers are going to be moved on to the Single Spine without due consideration of issues by teacher unions way back in February 2010. We wish to emphasise that implementing the salary structure as it is now, is worse than not implementing it at all, and NAGRAT will resist such attempts which are likely to disadvantage teachers,” he cautioned.

Responding to the NAGRAT concerns on the Single Spine, the Chief Executive Officer of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, Mr George Smith-Graham, promised the teachers that everything was being done to migrate the teachers on to the SSSS smoothly.

He emphasised that nothing would be done to the disadvantage of anybody or group of persons.

Mr Alorvi, on behalf of the past leaders thanked the association for the honour done them.