The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has appealed to Parliament to ensure that the Pension Bill is passed into law before the end of its tenure in December. The government presented to Parliament a comprehensive Pension Bill to provide pension reforms in the country by the introduction of a three-tier pension scheme. A statement issued by the GNAT Public Relations Department said it was of the opinion when the Bill was passed into law, it would ensure sustainability and adequate pension income security for Ghanaian workers. The second reading of the bill began before parliament adjourned last month. GNAT’s appeal to Parliament is contained in a six-point communiqué issued at the end of a two-day National Council meeting held from August 6-7 at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi. The meeting, which is held once every year, brought together 143 GNAT Council members from the 10 regions to deliberate on ways to advance the cause of teachers and also formulate policies to improve upon teachers’ contribution to national development. The statement emphasised that a natural reaction to the passage of the bill and its eventual receipt of Presidential assent, would be the expression of joy by all pensioners who stood to benefit from the scheme. It called on the government to put premium on measures to retain teachers in the classroom alongside plans to increase intake into Teacher Training Colleges in the country. The statement said the National Council of GNAT expressed grave concern about payroll anomalies, and called for the “cleaning up” of the payroll by urgently solving the current confusion emanating from the operation of the IPPD two system. On the Single Spine Salary Structure, it said members of the Council were of the opinion that it held great promise for workers in the country and appealed to the government to assist employee organisations to educate workers to understand the rationale and nuances involved in the implementation of the new system. GNAT said it believed that it was the responsibility of the government to plan and systematically design the linkage of various levels of education with the world of work. While calling for a review of the implementation of the School Feeding Programme, GNAT also requested government to review the current operations and plan seriously for its expansion. On the impending elections, GNAT called on all political parties to be tolerant of opposing views and focus on issue-based campaigns to ensure violence-free and credible elections in December. It called on citizens to ensure that they used their legal franchise to ensure peaceful elections for the country, adding, “the peace and stability being currently enjoyed by Ghanaians should not be taken for granted”. The statement expressed worry about teacher supply in subject areas like Mathematics, Science and Social Studies and noted that without quality training in these areas, the effectiveness of the teacher in ensuring the success of the new education reforms would be hampered. Source: GNA