The communication Director of the opposition National Democratic Congress, Mr Dallas Ampomah Williams (NDC) has denied claims that the free SHS policy will be scrapped when the NDC return to power.
According to him, the free senior high school policy is a brain child of the National Democratic Congress under the erstwhile John Dramani Mahama administration.
Mr William Ampomah Dallas stressed the former President has never opposed the policy since its implementation in 2017.
Speaking to ‘Rite Morning Ride’ on Rite FM, the NDC Regional communication Director said, “Akufo-Addo should tell us where we said we will cancel the free SHS policy. …you can’t put the cart before the horse. We said, we will review the way the NPP is implementing the free SHS to make it more functional to benefit all. That was why we were saying there should be infrastructure.”
Adding that the policy is underpinned and guaranteed by the 1992 Constitution of Ghana, and cannot be overturned by any government.
“But all administrations, including this one (Akufo-Add government), and any future one has an obligation to make it a qualitative and enjoyable experience for our children. And I’m determined to make secondary education a beneficial learning experience more than the current miserable conditions our children are facing under Nana Akufo-Addo’s administration,” he said.
Dallas Ampomah also noted that the Free SHS policy is producing quantity instead of the quality hence the need for review to strategize the proper ways to implement the policy by the NDC when voted into power in 2020 general election.
“We’ll make sure the right things are done to bring an end to the double track system which has gain root in education system in Ghana,” he added.
The Communication Cirector of the opposition National Democratic Congress warned that NPP administration should not take credit of the free SHS because his NDC started it under John Dramani Mahama’s administration through the Progressively Free SHS policy.
He is urging Ghanaians to vote for change in 2020 by bringing the NDC and John Dramani Mahana back to continue with the good work.
However, addressing the staff and students of the Koforidua Secondary Technical School, as part of his 3-day working visit to the Eastern Region, the president said the NDC was bent on destroying the free Senior High School programme which his administration has started, noting that: “I know that there are people in this country who don’t want this policy, who have been campaigning against this policy to cancel the policy.”
He continued: “I want them to know that they are not coming to power, and the Free Senior High School policy has come to stay. They still haven’t woken up from their dreams; they dreamt in 2016 that they were on course for victory. They did not know that the Ghanaian people were no longer interested in entrusting them with power.”
To the critics of the policy, Nana Akufo-Addo stated that the most effective answer would be for SHS 3 students, who would be sitting for next year’s WASSCE, to put up a stellar performance in their examination.
“I am confident that the results of those exams, next year, are going to show that this policy is a good policy for our development. The policy is in your hands and you can demonstrate the quality of the education that you have received by the quality of the results of next year’s exams. I have confidence that the result will be positive and everyone will say, ‘Yes, it was a good idea to go down this road. Our young men and women are benefiting, and this is the way to go for progress and development,” Nana Akufo-Addo added.
The president said he will continue to channel most of Ghana’s resources into the education of Ghanaian children since education forms the bedrock of development. “We cannot develop a country unless we develop its human capital.”
“The central role of education in our national development can never be overemphasised. It is the key to the future of our country and I have no hesitation in making it the central pillar of my government and administration.
“People are saying I am spending a lot of money on education and I am saying to them that it is better that we spend the money on the future of Ghana.”
With students from SHS 1 to SHS 3, all going to be beneficiaries of the Free Senior High School policy across Ghana, the President indicated that, for the first time in the nation’s history, over 1.2 million students will be enrolled in Free Senior High school education in Ghana.
“These figures have never ever been attained in the history of our country. The Minister for Education has said that enrolment in our senior high schools has gone up by 50% since the policy was introduced and this policy has come to stay,” he added.
On why he is spending a lot of resources on education, Nana Akufo-Addo explained that “it is better that we spend the money on the future of Ghana, rather than just consuming it and ‘chopping’ the money amongst ourselves.
“Before I became President, in my campaign I said that, I was prepared to use the oil money to educate our children and not to allow it to go into the pockets of politicians and civil servants, and that is exactly what I am doing.”
Source: ritefmonline.org/Austin Ofori Addo
