In a blistering direct attack on a group of teaching  and non-teaching staff of the Ghana Education Service, embattled Acting Upper West regional director of the Ghana Education Service, Iddrisu Mahama has questioned the work, motive and credibility of the group in the region.

Speaking at the launch of a Diploma in Arabic programme by the Ghana Institute of Languages, Iddrisu Mahama veered off from the programme in his closing remarks and rather took a swipe at the group for failing to perform their roles as teachers.

Concern Teachers and Non-teaching staff of the Ghana Education Service in the Upper West region held a press conference demanding the removal of the acting regional director who they claimed had massaged his age to stay on as the regional director of education when he passed the mandatory retirement age of 60.

‘‘Available records indicate that Mr. Iddrisu Mahama has two conflicting date of births.1965, thus his middle school form one (F1), he used 1953 as the year of birth at the middle day school. Between 19^th September, 1967 and August 1968, he has February 1954 as his date of birth when he entered middle form three (F3) at the same school,’’ the group stated.

The group further stated that educational institutions have not seen any positive change since he took over the administration of education in the region on 15^th April 2011.

‘‘Our senior high schools have suffered so much interference by the acting regional director of education to extent that it has a heavy toll on the performance of schools. The region has never attained more than 30% in the WAEC league table.

Our district directors of education and religious Unit Managers are mere observers in the running of education from grassroots. He has monopolised all these levels in the educational ladder and money making takes center stage of his administration,’’ they alleged.

The group gave the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service a two week ultimatum to remove him from office or face massive demonstration from their members in the region.

But Mr. Iddrisu Mahama in swift rebuttal wondered why the group is not interested in teacher absenteeism, indiscipline at schools but rather going round monitoring when regional directors are due for retirement.

‘‘Teachers’ attitude is not to sit under and mango trees disagreeing with directors (education).The serious teachers are in classrooms and not those lazy ones out there barking.

“If you call yourself concern teachers, you should be concerned about teaching. In our time we used to see the trees but sit in the classroom. We used to weep when our students failed. How many of you do that today when your students failed,’’ he lamented.

He boasted a teacher of Kanton Senior High School, Yahaya Moomen who was adjudged as the best teacher in the country during the 20^th National Teachers’ Day awards last year.

This, he said was a testament to his good work as a regional director