Staff unions of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) have announced their decision to back down on demonstrations following a recent meeting with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, at the Jubilee House in Accra.
At a union meeting in Tema, Abdul-Rahman Baidoo, Chairman of the MDU, said their decision was pinned on the president’s assurance that the concession agreement between the GPHA and MPS will be examined to produce a fair, and favorable outcome for the country.
“By the demeanor of the President and the interaction we had, I am convinced that within the next six weeks there is going to be solution to all these problems,” another GPHA union executive expressed.
Members of the MDU, of which GPHA union is part, has for about three weeks been wearing red as a symbol of their displeasure towards the GPHA-MPS concession agreement.
According to them, the deal has serious ramifications including massive loss of jobs and revenue to GPHA and the economy as a whole should it be allowed to go on in its current form.
“The President has indicated to us that he has been interested and has followed whatever has been going on ever since the union brought its concerns on the concession.
The president has consequently made a commitment to us that he is going to look at the issues that the unionized groups have raised and eventually, we are all expecting the concession agreement to be reviewed.”
According to Mr. Baidoo, the executives found it necessary to assemble members of the union and update them on the outcome of their meeting with the president.
He disclosed that the union is however monitoring closely developments of the review process and has set a time limit of 6-8 weeks to allow government deliver on its assurance to review and salvage the situation.