Coronavirus: Private schools call for the reopening of schools

The Ghana National Council of Private Schools (GNACOPS) is arguing for the reopening of schools.

According to the Executive Director of GNACOPS, Enoch Kwasi Gyetuah, schools should be re-opened if the government believes it was safe regardless of the rise in COVID-19 cases in the country.

Schools in Ghana have been closed since  March 15, 2020, as part of a broader ban on social gathering, to stop the spread of COVID-19.

While pre-tertiary education teachers in public schools want the ban to remain so far as the country continues to record coronavirus cases, their counterparts in private schools and private school owners believe the time is ripe for students to return to the classroom.

“I want the President to reopen schools and come up with some mechanisms and approach that we can all adhere to because I still see students who have been asked to stay home still roaming on the street.

“I also see them engaging in a lot of social activities on the streets. So if there is a directive that we should go to the classroom … and now the government gives us some measures to adhere to, then we will adhere to the measures,” he said in an interview on Citi FM.

The position of GNACOPS has been strongly opposed by four teacher unions.

The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Tertiary Education Workers Union (TEWU), and Coalition of Concerned Teachers (CCT) in a joint statement, argued that their members were not equipped with personal protective equipment(PPE) to fight against the novel deadly virus.

They indicated that items for the observation of the prescribed protocols which includes face masks and alcohol-based sanitisers were not available in the various schools hence their apprehension.

President Nana Akufo-Addo is expected to address the country on the new measures adopted to fight COVID-19 by May 31, 2020.