Another Protest Rocks Government In Kumasi

Concerned youth with the ‘Youth in Afforestation’ programme in the Ashanti Region, on Wednesday gathered at the Jubilee Park, Kumasi, to demonstrate against the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government over unpaid salaries and has given the government up to Friday to pay the monies owed them.

They group said, in January 2019, the Chief Executive of the Forestry Commission, Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, made promises to the workers concerning their salaries.

However, Mr. Afriyie has denied claims by the personnel that they were owed some six months salaries.

The Commission, he said, owes its workers for three months and are going to pay same.

But according to the group, they are owed four to eight months stipends and want the Forestry Commission to pay the entire arrears.

“We do not want them to pay only two months and leave the rest,” one of the leaders said.

The youth also lamented the breach of contract by the government saying their engagement document “explicitly states” the amounts they are entitled to be paid.

However, the government, according to them, has unilaterally reduced their salaries.

“Is that not a breach of contract, it is!”

They complained of their working conditions stating there is no insurance policy for them so when they get injured in the line of duty, they are on their own.

One of them said, “One of our colleagues was bitten by a snake and his entire hospital bill is more than the ¢400 salary, which is not even being paid.”

The group, numbering over 300 say the inability of government to meet its obligation to them consistently, is due to the absence of a clear policy document on the model they are enrolled on.

The protesting youth have also threatened to stop work on Friday if they do not receive favourable response from the government.