General News
Political communicators must prepare before speaking on teachers’ strike – Seth Afum Dankwah
A teacher at J.G. Knol Technical Institute in Adukrom in the Eastern Region, Seth Afum A. Dankwah, has called on political communicators to properly prepare and rely on facts before commenting publicly on sensitive issues such as the ongoing teachers’ strike.
According to him, political communication during periods of industrial unrest must be handled with empathy, accuracy and restraint, rather than through threats, condemnation or sweeping generalisations.
His comments come in the wake of the nationwide strike by three pre-tertiary teacher unions involving teaching staff of the Ghana Education Service.
In a statement, Mr Dankwah argued that communicators who seek to help the government resolve the impasse must first understand the realities confronting teachers and the education sector before going on radio, television or political platforms.
He drew a comparison between the work of teachers and political communicators, saying just as teachers are expected to prepare lesson notes, research their subject matter, structure lesson objectives and anticipate questions from learners, communicators must also prepare adequately before addressing the public.
He said effective communication requires the careful selection of language that informs and inspires rather than intimidates or deepens tensions.
Mr Dankwah expressed concern about comments attributed to Janet Asana Nabla, Chairperson and Leader of the People’s National Party (PNP) and the party’s 2024 presidential candidate, during a recent appearance on Onua FM.
According to him, Ms Nabla was reported to have called for the government to deal decisively with teachers and demote headmasters. He said she also reportedly described teachers as largely irresponsible and accused them of contributing to the development of irresponsible students.
He further said the comments attributed to her included allegations that headmasters had abdicated their supervisory responsibilities, teachers condoned and encouraged examination malpractice, and teachers allowed or facilitated students to dance in their school uniforms on TikTok.
Mr Dankwah cautioned against making such broad accusations without verifiable data or evidence from Ghana Education Service monitoring and evaluation reports.
He argued that using the conduct of a few teachers or isolated incidents to portray an entire profession negatively could damage teachers’ morale and dignity at a time when their cooperation is needed to resolve the current industrial dispute.
He therefore appealed to political communicators to “prepare ahead of time” before speaking publicly on the teachers’ concerns.
He questioned whether communicators had visited schools in deprived and hard-to-reach communities where children are taught under fragile canopies or beneath trees due to inadequate classroom infrastructure.
He also asked whether they had seen schools without staff common rooms, offices for heads of department, decent dormitories, proper toilet facilities, perimeter walls, functional kitchens, dining halls, IT laboratories, science laboratories and workshops for practical and vocational training.
Mr Dankwah also highlighted the absence of staff accommodation in some boarding schools and the challenges faced by understaffed schools.
He said some teachers in deprived communities, despite earning modest salaries, often use their personal resources to support their students.
According to him, teachers sometimes buy chalk, print examination questions, provide sanitary pads for vulnerable female students, pay school fees and even provide food for hungry learners before they can effectively begin teaching.
Against this background, he said threats to deal with or demote teachers and headmasters cannot be considered strategic communication.
He described such an approach as potentially counterproductive, arguing that it could create more tension and turn teachers into adversaries of the government at a time when constructive engagement is required.
Mr Dankwah said President John Dramani Mahama needs communicators who can help calm tensions rather than inflame passions amid the ongoing labour dispute.
He urged government communicators to focus on verified information about steps being taken through engagements with the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, the Ghana Education Service and the teacher unions.
He said such communication should seek to calm frayed nerves, build bridges with organised labour and restore public confidence and trust.
Mr Dankwah concluded by urging political communicators across Ghana to learn from the teaching profession by preparing thoroughly before addressing the public.
“Respect teachers. Prepare well. Speak with empathy, with decorum, and with wisdom,” he said, stressing that such an approach would provide a more genuine and patriotic way of supporting the country and advancing the government’s Resetting Ghana agenda.
