Central Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Bernard Allotey Jacobs has described the Free Senior High School policy proposed by the Akufo-Addo-led government as a ‘lullaby’ the government is singing to deceive Ghanaians.
According to him, though the NPP government has expressed optimism about the proposed implementation of the policy, he doubted the government would be able to sustain it.
“How free is your free SHS? I think this policy is just a lullaby mothers sing to their babies just to make them sleep and that is what the NPP is doing now with their free SHS policy because they are just deceiving Ghanaians. I don’t see any future in that,” he stated.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has indicated that he still stands by his campaign promise of redefining basic education to incorporate kindergarten to SHS and absorbing the cost of same.
Speaking at the 60th anniversary of the Okuapemman SHS at Akropong Akuapem, the President said the inability of the country to give all of its citizens the kind of education that enabled Western and Asian countries to progress is the missing link in Ghana’s economic development.
“For this reason, I am committed, without any equivocation, without any reservation, without any doubt, to take Ghana to the stage where public SHS education will be free for every Ghanaian child.
“I want every Ghanaian child to attend secondary school, not just for what they study in books but for the life experiences that they will gain. I want each of them to look in the mirror in the morning every morning and know that they can achieve anything they dream of when they complete their studies,” President Akufo-Addo said.
Commenting on this on Adom FM’s Morning Show “Dwaso Nsem” Tuesday, Mr Allotey Jacobs indicated that the NPP government should rather focus on accessibility and retention of students in schools because he believes the policy is not sustainable.
He however called on experts in education and finance to immediately interrogate the statement by the president on the free SHS policy.
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