We Don’t Believe A Single Word About Your Promise To Pay Our Allowances – Trainee Nurses Distrust Mahama
Former President Mahama’s promise of paying trainee nurses allowances has been met with mistrust as a number of trainee nurses have rejected the former President’s promise describing it as a “mere political bait”.
Mahama, as President between 2012 and 2016, cancelled allowances for trainee nurses and teachers and when the then opposition NPP responded to growing calls by affected trainees by promising to restore the allowances when they come into government, Mr. Mahama maintained his grounds vowing not to restore it.
The Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government, honoring their promise, restored the allowances immediately President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo assumed office in 2017 and has continuously expressed commitment to continue paying it in spite of recent delays in disbursements.
As the 2024 election campaign heats up, former President Mahama appears to have found new love for the allowances he cancelled and refused to restore under his regime.
He is on a promising galore assuring the nurses he will pay their outstanding allowances if they will elect him into office again.
“I know all the challenges you are facing with your allowances and I am going to solve them when I come”, Mahama told trainees at Ntotoroso Nursing and Midwifery Training College days ago.
However, Mahama appears to have lost the trust and confidence of trainee nurses as they take his promise with a pinch of salt.
A student who spoke after his interaction at the College said; “He is just sweet-talking us. It is only a political bait because this is the same man who cancelled the allowances and refused to restore it even with calls for him to restore it”.
Another stated she thought “former President Mahama would have something new for trainee nurses but it turned out there was really nothing from him”.
“How do you look us in the face and promise us allowances you cancelled which your main opponents restored for us?”, she asked disappointingly.
She added; “Mahama also promised to give us jobs through the hospitals the NPP government are building in districts across the country. I was confused when he said that, honestly. How do you come and promise us jobs through hospitals your opponents are building? By that statement, the former President himself has admitted that he has nothing new to offer us.”
“Won’t the NPP which is building the hospitals offer trainee nurses jobs through the hospitals they are building? If I have to trust any of them, my trust will be with the party that restored the allowances and the party building the hospitals, not Mahama who cancelled it.”
Another trainee, who is in her 2nd year, said she was 11 years old when Mahama left office as President but stressed her elder sister, who is a nurse, told her the story about how Mahama cancelled their allowances, leaving many nurses stranded and how many of them who completed their training couldn’t be posted to start work due to an embargo on public sector recruitment, all of which happened during Mahama’s reign.
She stated; “My sister tells me how many trainees struggled in school due to the cancellation of the allowance by Mahama and how many of them struggled after school because of the backlog. My colleagues and I have also read so much about it. So much about what happened under Mahama as President with regards to trainee allowances and how the NPP restored it to help many. So many of us here who showed up to listen to Mr. former President Mahama don’t really believe what he is telling us.”
Source: Ghmessenger.com
