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Over fifty thousand teacher trainees in the country have given the government up to Friday, November 25 to refund the two-semester feeding grants they were made to pay to cover their feeding over the last two semesters.

Each student was made to pay GH¢560 per semester after the government had assured them that their feeding grants would be fully borne by the government owing to the undue delay in the release of the grants.

The students claim the government wants to take them for a ‘ride’ after scrapping allowances for trainee teachers.

They stated that by the end of their two-day ultimatum, the government will see the ‘dark’ side of trainee teachers.

At a press conference yesterday to express their grievances, the acting of the National Executive Council of Teacher Trainees, Jonathan Apam, said recently the Vice President Amissah-Arthur announced at the Assin Fosu College of Education in the Central Region that the government has released an amount of GH¢50 million for reimbursement to trainee teachers to cover their two semesters feeding grants.

He said the promise turned out to be a hoax when students followed it up at the Ghana Education Service (GES).

Teacher trainees and newly trained teachers are really suffering, and it seems the government has relegated training of teachers and issues concerning teachers to the background because it feels teachers do not matter in the scheme of things, the acting president said.

“We are doing this press conference not because of the coming elections but all avenues to address our concerns have been exhausted and the impression is that people in the helm of affairs at the Ghana Education Service and in government just do not care about us and our welfare,” Jonathan Apam said.

The teacher trainees also asked government to put them on the National Service Scheme when they start teaching to prepare them financially before given permanent postings.

The acting president said newly trained teachers are frustrated right from postings, which are unduly delayed to financial clearance.

“This time our postings come very late and when they finally come we are asked to go for our certificates and result slips from our various institutions to fill our IPPDs before the green light is given for us to receive our salaries, and this is creating serious difficulties for us,” the acting president said, stressing that teacher trainees are going to fight for their rights.