How Teachers’ Fund Wastes 4Million Cedis Annually Will Make Teachers Cry

A group calling itself, Ghana Teachers’ Forum has indicated that the Teachers Fund wastes some 4Million Cedis Annually. According to the group, this wasteful spending of the contributions of teachers has serious negative implications on the investment returns of contributors among others.
Below is the full report from the group…
HOW TEACHERS’ FUND IS WASTING GHC 4,000,000 OF OUR CONTRIBUTIONS ANNUALLY. GHANA TEACHERS’ FORUM – THE TEACHERS’ MOVEMENT – EMAIL: [email protected]
The Ghana Teachers’ Forum exists as a pressure group within all the Teacher Unions.
Over the past years, members have been made to believe that, the Government of the day is the reason teachers do not have a successful life.
The turn of events in recent times has come to diffuse that assertion. Members have now become fully aware that, the leaders of the various associations namely GNAT, NAGRAT & CCT are the problems members need to contend with.
The events that are unfolding in the procurement and distribution of laptops for teachers is the last straw that broke the camel’s back.
It, therefore, behooves on us, as union members to rise up and ask the pertinent questions that inadvertently guarantee us a better future.
We the members of Ghana National Association Teachers who are part of this movement are therefore calling on leadership to prioritize the needs of their members above their own parochial, greedy and selfish interests.
Members of this forum are not oblivious of the many life-changing opportunities that have been initiated to help members leapfrog in their chosen career in their quest to have a fulfilled life.
We, therefore, wish to say Ayekoo to our leadership for policies such as the Cancer Fund that ensures the members do not struggle when the need arise and also the Teachers’ Fund which ensures that, members are able to access low-interest loans and also have an enjoyable future.
However, there are some issues with regards to the quaterly allowances paid to District Finance Committee members and the Regional Trustees members would like to seek clarity on.
It is good to appreciate or reward people for their labour. When an action attracts reward, it is certainly repeated. The reverse is true when that same action attracts punishment. We are therefore not against paying allowances to DFCs members and Regional Trustees
1. The DFCs as we are aware, is made up of the District Secretary, Chairman, Treasurer, and any other member. We are reliably informed about the fat allowances paid to these members quarterly.
2. Members are also aware that, the Fund currently operates in 122 Districts and in all the 10 administrative regions of the association.. This means that a total of 488 DFCs members and 10 Regional Trustees are paid quarterly and to a larger extent annually. In total 498 members are piad allowances from the coffers of the fund.
3. We are also aware that, these allowances are based on the volume of loans members contract within their jurisdictions. The 2020 financial report suggests that some individual members of the DFCs received as much as GHc12,000.00 in a quater with others receiving Ghc5,000,00 and the least being GHc2,000.00. amidst Covid-19.
4. Averagely, each member receives not less than GHc2000.00 in a quarter. Therefore an amount of NINE HUNDRED AND NINETY SIX THOUSAND (i.e 498* Ghc2,000 = 996,000) are spent on these members as allowances every 3 months.
5. Averagely, each member of the DFC takes home GHc 8,000.00 annually.
6. Annually, an amount of THREE MILLION NINE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-FOUR THOUSAND CEDIS (GHc996,000*4 = GHc 3,984,000) is spent as allowances on DFC members and the Regional Trustees.
7. Again, we are also aware that, officials who are hired and paid for by the contributions of members receives interest-free loans.
Members would therefore like to ask the following;
a. What role do these members play before loan applicants receives their cheque?
b. Is there any documentary evidence to suggest that, these members carry out the responsibilities assigned to them if any?
c. Are the contributions of the DFC members taken into consideration before the allowances are disbursed to them?
d. Are the allowances being used as a decoy to get members through the District Chairmen to get your financial statements approved?
e. Is it also as a means to carry out your nefarious activities with the tacit approval from the District Chairmen?
f. Why can’t those monies be added to the returns on our investments to increase our dividends or earnings?
g. Why can’t the interest rate be brought to 10% or below?
h. Why are the increases on our returns very marginal?
i. We are challenging the fund administrators to provide the 2020 and 2021 financial statement to disprove the facts herein if any.
Recommendations
1. This Forum is calling for a total cancellation of the allowances paid to the DFCs. This is rightly so because, we believe that, the District Secretaries are mandated to discharge the activities of the Teachers’ Fund. The Political arm of the GNAT is to serve as a vanguard to check on the activities performed by the Administrative staff.
2. The Fund Administrator and the Board should make frantic efforts to roll out the electronic means of applying for a loan by contributors. This would also help to reduce the cost at which the fund operates and also reduce the bottle-necks in applying and securing a loan facility.
We are humbly asking the leadership of GNAT and the Fund Administrator to provide the needed responses in order to forestall the weaning confidence members are beginning to have in the leadership of our great association.
We will explore any other medium or actions we deem fit to get answers if the responses are not forthcoming. Members of this movement are therefore calling on the leadership of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) to take a critical look at the aforementioned concerns espoused by the rank and file to engender confidence in them.
We cannot be perceived to be born free but are in chains wherever we go.
We are calling on all teachers across the country to join this movement to get the right things done.
ARISE! ARISE!! ARISE!!!
CONVENERS
ABDUL RAZAK IBRAHIM – 0249741489 LEAD CONVENER AHAFO
DANIEL WELBECK JNR. – 0249575823 MEMBER CENTRAL
GEORGE MEKE KOMISAH – 0204955001 MEMBER CENTRAL