Former President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Eric Angel Carbonu, has engaged in a heated exchange with Ghanaian journalist Nana Yaw Fianko, popularly known as “Speaker”, over teachers’ salaries, working conditions and claims about their ability to afford expensive vehicles.
The disagreement began after Nana Yaw Fianko, host of a programme on Atinka TV, criticised teacher unions for allegedly failing to secure better salaries and conditions of service for teachers.
The journalist accused some union executives of prioritising their personal interests instead of fighting for the welfare of their members.
“All the suffering that teachers are going through is because of the executives leading the teacher unions. About 70 percent of their problems are caused by such executives,” he claimed.
He further alleged that some union leaders had become too close to politicians and were more interested in their own financial benefits.
The comments provoked a response from Carbonu, who challenged the journalist to disclose his own salary and employment conditions before criticising teachers and their union leaders.
Carbonu questioned whether Nana Yaw Fianko could personally afford the kind of luxury vehicles he had suggested teachers should not be able to purchase.
“Nana Yaw Fianko of Atinka FM, how much is your monthly salary? Do you work under conditions of service?” Carbonu asked.
He argued that the journalist’s employment arrangement was also subject to contractual terms and questioned whether his income was significantly higher than that of some public-sector workers.
Carbonu further compared the journalist’s alleged earnings with the salary of an Assistant Director II in the Ghana Education Service.
He also challenged Nana Yaw Fianko’s ability to purchase a Land Cruiser, which had become a major point of contention in the debate.
“Your take-home pay is not more than that of an Assistant Director II in the Ghana Education Service. You say teachers cannot buy Land Cruisers but I wonder how many public servants can afford Land Cruisers,” he stated.
“But you, Nana Yaw Fianko, can you buy a Land Cruiser?” he asked.
The former NAGRAT president also accused the journalist of benefiting from the same system he was criticising while questioning how much he takes home at the end of each month.
The argument reportedly became increasingly heated, with the two men exchanging strong words over their respective earnings and the financial strength of their organisations.
At the centre of the disagreement was Nana Yaw Fianko’s earlier question about how teachers could afford V8 vehicles despite their salaries and conditions of service.
His remarks reignited a broader debate over the financial circumstances of teachers, the role of teacher unions and whether public-sector workers can realistically afford high-end vehicles on their incomes.
While Nana Yaw Fianko placed responsibility on union executives for what he described as the poor conditions faced by teachers, Carbonu pushed back by questioning whether critics fully understood the salaries and financial realities of public-sector workers.
The exchange has since drawn attention to the wider discussion about teacher remuneration in Ghana, including the role of union leaders in negotiating improved conditions and the financial pressures facing workers in the public sector.
