Over 200 members of the Ghana Nurse -Midwife Trainees Association picketed at the premises of the Health Ministry today [Monday].
This is the second time they are demonstrating after the government announced that it was going to enrol nurses in the Heal Ghana module of the Nation Builders Corp programme.
The nurses say they strongly oppose the move.
[contextly_sidebar id=”ydZ2xXPbTaNVPMumjhtOVMfGlJniBHfn”]The students say will stay at the premises of the Health Ministry until they are cleared and posted.
“I am here because I came for my financial clearance for posting. I came here around 6 am. If our concerns are not met, we will keep on sleeping here,” one Trainee Nurse threatened.
“If we do not get our financial clearance, we will not return. We are well prepared with our mosquito nets. I am here with my bags,” another Trainee Nurse said.
The health professionals are being encouraged to enrol in government’s Nation Builders’ Corps (NABCO) which is for a maximum period of three years for GHc 700 a month.
They, however, say enrolling in the programme may mean that clearance for permanent employment will not be granted.
The National Health Students Association has also complained that though the government’s decision to introduce the programme is to address graduate unemployment, the remuneration falls far below their skills and training.
It also said the government’s decision to enrol them in the programme is a subtle way of shirking its responsibility towards them.
The government has explained that unemployed nurses will be posted when they eventually receive financial clearance.
The Coordinator of the Nation Builders Corps, Dr Ibrahim Anyass, had earlier stated that although there are openings for graduate nurses to be employed under the scheme, application for the jobs is not compulsory.
According to him, the project had been initiated by the government as a stopgap measure to allow graduates from tertiary institutions who had completed their mandatory year of National Service gain vital work experience, while ensuring that they continue to practice the skills they have learnt.
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By: Marian Ansah/citinewsroom.com/Ghana
