The Communications Director of the Progressive Alliance for Ghana (PAG) and spokesperson for the party’s flagbearer, Dr John Enyonam Kpikpi, Donald Brown Dzamashie, has questioned the government’s treatment of teachers following an increase in monthly allowances for Paramount Chiefs and Queen Mothers.
In a Facebook post, Mr Dzamashie expressed concern over what he considers unequal attention to the welfare of traditional authorities and teachers, particularly amid unresolved concerns over promotion arrears, conditions of service and the deprived-area allowance.
His comments follow an announcement by the Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mahama Ayariga, on October 5, 2026, that monthly allowances for Paramount Chiefs and Queen Mothers had been increased from GH¢1,200 to GH¢3,000, representing a 150 per cent increase. The minister also said six quarters of payments had been made since the current administration took office.
Questioning the apparent disparity in attention to the two groups, Mr Dzamashie wrote: “What crime have Ghanaian teachers committed to deserve this treatment?”
He acknowledged the importance of traditional authorities in preserving Ghana’s culture, maintaining peace and providing community leadership, but argued that the welfare of teachers also deserved urgent national attention.
“But this raises an important question, what about our teachers?” he asked.
Mr Dzamashie said teachers remained central to the country’s development because of their responsibility for educating and shaping the minds of children who would become doctors, engineers, lawyers, entrepreneurs and future leaders.
He expressed concern that teachers continued to face outstanding promotion arrears, delays in negotiations over their conditions of service and the non-implementation of the deprived-area allowance.
“Why should the people entrusted with educating our children have to resort to industrial action before their legitimate concerns receive urgent attention?” he further questioned.
His remarks come amid industrial action by major pre-tertiary teacher unions over unresolved conditions of service, delays in placing promoted teachers on their appropriate salary scales and the implementation of the deprived-area allowance.
The government has given assurances that it is working to address the grievances. Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has pledged to settle outstanding promotion arrears by October 30, 2026, while negotiations over teachers’ conditions of service and plans for the deprived-area allowance remain ongoing.
Mr Dzamashie, however, stressed that his concerns were not intended to create a contest between teachers and traditional authorities.
“This is not about pitching chiefs against teachers. Both deserve respect and fair treatment,” he stated.
He maintained that teachers’ welfare must be treated as a national priority if Ghana was to secure a better future, arguing that neglecting educators would undermine the very foundation on which the country’s development depended.
“A country cannot build a strong future while neglecting the people building that future in the classroom,” he wrote.
He concluded his post with a call for improved treatment of educators, stating: “Our teachers deserve better. Our children deserve better. Ghana deserves better.”
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