The National Association of Institutional Suppliers has issued a two-week ultimatum to the Ministry of Education to settle their outstanding debt of GH₵136 million owed to them.

According to the spokesperson of the association, Emmanuel Ayivor, logistics including books, uniforms, PE kits, and school clothes supplied to senior high schools across the country between 2021 and 2022 have not been paid for.

Speaking to JoyNews on Tuesday, May 7, he stated that despite efforts to prompt the Ministry to settle the debt owed to them, the government has been negligent.

“We are actually looking at two weeks because we are meeting with the police. Once the police gives us the signal just in two weeks we are ready to go. But like I told you, the one we did first, it was only the beginning. You see we just started and they called us but this time picketing is picketing.

“This time we are not going to allow them to deceive us until that they will give us our money and we are not going to leave the premises. We will sit there and watch Dr Adutwum [Education Minister] face for him give us our money.

The association suspended an earlier picketing at the Ministry of Education following an intervention by ministry officials who promised to settle all outstanding payments by April 10, 2024.

However, Mr Ayivor said the association found that all these promises remain unfulfilled, informing their decision to resume the picketing in two weeks.

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“After the picketing, they told us that we should come back and sit down with them for us to discuss the other outstanding issues. Our issues were four, we have gone back to them and what the minister told us is that his priority is to pay us and he has no other discussion with us. He has nothing to do with us and he doesn’t want to discuss all the other three issues with us.

“It means that they have an agenda. This agenda of paying us and laying us off or taking the contract from us. They haven’t even fulfilled this one and the other three issues from the minister’s own mouth, he has nothing to discuss with us because we have crossed the line by picketing against him. This time, we are going to picket” he noted.