The National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) has issued a stark 14-day ultimatum to the government and security agencies, demanding immediate action against students who brutally assaulted a teacher at Kade Senior High Technical School (SHTS).
According to the firm warning which was delivered by Awoonor-Yevu Godwin, the Eastern Regional Chairman of NAGRAT, at a press conference addressing the “barbaric and shameful act,” failure to arrest, prosecute, and compensate the victim within this period will trigger a nationwide sit-down strike by teachers, a move the union warned will inevitably disrupt the 2026 academic calendar.
“We want to address a matter of grave concern that strikes at the very heart of our education system: the growing wave of assaults on teachers across Ghana.
“Our immediate concern arises from the recent viral video circulating in the media space, showing a group of students from Kade Senior High Technical School viciously assaulting a teacher on his way home”
Awoonor-Yevu Godwin, Eastern Regional Chairman of NAGRAT
According to Mr. Awoonor-Yevu, preliminary investigations by the union into the assault captured in the widely circulated video, indicate the teacher was attacked by a group of unruly students simply for enforcing discipline and upholding school rules, prompting a tense situation that required swift intervention by staff to prevent a retaliatory attack.
NAGRAT emphasized that the Kade SHTS incident is not isolated but is part of an “alarming frequency” of violence spreading across the nation’s schools.
The union condemned the act in the strongest possible terms, arguing that teachers – the backbone of national development – are increasingly forced to work under intolerable conditions of threats, violence, and fear.
To underscore the severity of the trend, the union cited multiple recent, high-profile attacks over the last few months.
In September 2025, a second-year student at Takoradi Technical Institute stabbed a teacher for preventing him from using an unauthorized entry path. Earlier, a student of Christian Methodist Senior High School stabbed a teacher, Walter Yesutor Adanunyo, for preventing examination malpractice during the WASSCE.
The Association also recalled an incident in 2024 where a teacher, Mr. Ishmael Famous of Asuoso SHS, was brutally attacked and stabbed in the eye after instructing students to return to class to study.
Other similar incidents in Three Town SHS in Denu and Nungua Cluster of Schools were also referenced, cementing the union’s stance that the dignity and safety of teachers have been severely compromised and are now non-negotiable.
NAGRAT’s Non-Negotiable Demands
While acknowledging the swift establishment of independent investigation committees by both the NAGRAT National Secretariat and the Director General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), the union stressed that mere investigations are no longer sufficient.
NAGRAT demanded concrete, measurable action within the two-week timeframe including a direct call for the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to immediately arrest and prosecute all students identified in the Kade SHTS video. Justice, NAGRAT insisted, “must be swift and uncompromising to restore nationwide confidence among educators.”
The association also demanded that a fair compensation package be immediately provided to the assaulted teacher to address the physical and psychological trauma.
Further, NAGRAT demanded the immediate institution of a risk allowance for all teachers, arguing that the increasing dangers associated with their duties must be formally recognized and compensated by the state.
The 14-day ultimatum serves as the final line of defense for teachers, whose “patience has reached its limit.” Mr. Awoonor-Yevu Godwin warned that the union will no longer tolerate a system that permits its members to be “beaten, insulted, and humiliated without consequence.”
“Let us sound this note of warning: if prompt action is not taken by the Ghana Police Service and the Ghana Education Service to prosecute the culprits (students) and give a fair compensation to the victim involved within fourteen (14) working days, teachers across the country may be forced to embark on a nationwide sit-down strike”
Awoonor-Yevu Godwin, Eastern Regional Chairman of NAGRAT
NAGRAT concluded by calling on the Ministry of Education, the GES, and traditional authorities to collaborate with security agencies to enhance safety protocols in schools.
The union placed the responsibility squarely on the state, emphasizing that it is a moral and legal obligation for the government to guarantee the protection and secure working environment of every teacher. The union’s demand for justice, protection, and respect, they stressed, must be fulfilled “now, not later.”
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