The Minority in Parliament has expressed worry over the potential exclusion of private Senior High Schools (SHS) from the Free SHS programme.
They have therefore called on President John Dramani Mahama and Finance Minister-designate, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson to honour their campaign promise to include private schools in the programme.
At a press conference on Wednesday, January 15, Dr Gideon Boako, Member of Parliament for Tano North, criticised the Minister-designate’s dismissive attitude during his vetting on January 13.
Dr. Boako pointed out that Dr. Ato Forson was evasive when questioned about extending the Free SHS programme to private institutions – a policy commitment outlined in the National Democratic Congress (NDC) manifesto.
The Minority has urged the Finance Minister-designate to clarify his position and fulfil the campaign promise, ensuring equitable access to education for all Ghanaian students, including those in private institutions.
“When asked about the Free SHS programme and whether it would be extended to private schools as indicated in the NDC manifesto, the Minister Designate, in a very dismissive manner, asked whether those private schools write WASSCE exams.
“First, it was shocking to observe the minister designate feign ignorance of the fact that there are many private SHS that write the WASSCE. We can all recall that during the election campaign, President Mahama met the leadership of the private senior high schools and promised to include private schools in the free SHS programme.
“If President Mahama and the NDC knew that no private SHS writes WASSCE exams, why did they promise to include them in the Free SHS program? For the information of the Minister and President Mahama, there are private SHS in Ghana that write WASSCE, and they are anxiously waiting to be included in the Free SHS programme. What is the finance minister designate waiting for? Was this not their campaign promise? What informed the promises? Didn’t they do the numbers first?”
Vetting: Ato Forson was evasive, inconsistent and lacked clarity of thought – Minority
…..
Explore the world of impactful news with CitiNewsroom on WhatsApp!
Click on the link to join the Citi Newsroom channel for curated, meaningful stories tailored just for YOU: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaCYzPRAYlUPudDDe53x
No spam, just the stories that truly matter! #StayInformed #CitiNewsroom #CNRDigital
