The Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) has hit back at suggestions that it is making excessive demands on government, following the abrupt postponement of its scheduled meeting with the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health.
GRNMA General Secretary Dr. David Tenkorang, speaking to ABC News Gh on Friday, June 27, said the association is simply asking for the enforcement of agreements already made.
“They are not demands; they are agreed services from both the employer and employee,” he stressed.
Dr. Tenkorang expressed disappointment with the justification given for the postponement — the absence of the Ministers of Health and Finance — describing it as inadequate.
“Reasons given were not enough to postpone the meeting,” he stated, adding that government should stop treating the Association with disdain.
He further urged the public to join the call for accountability: “We expect ordinary Ghanaians to also advocate for the right thing to be done. The government is taking us for a ride.”
The meeting, initially scheduled for June 26, was to address unresolved issues following GRNMA’s nationwide strike that began on June 2 and escalated to a full withdrawal of services by June 9.
The strike was suspended on June 13 after public appeals and assurances of engagement from the Parliamentary Committee.
However, with the rescheduled meeting now pushed to July 10, GRNMA is warning that any further delay in implementing agreed resolutions could trigger another strike.
“We are not holding government into ransom,” Dr. Tenkorang reiterated, “but we expect them to do what is right.”