The Pillars of Cadres Ghana, a prominent advocacy group in the country has joined the calls by the opposition National Democratic Congress for President Akufo-Addo to sack the Registrar for the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat Dr. Kingsley Agyeman following the fourth Estate Scholarship Bonanza investigative piece.
The group in a statement signed by its National Communications Officer Prince Henry bemoaned what it described as the growing deprivation of the vulnerable and under-privileged in the country under President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s administration.
The National Communication Officer of Pillars of Cadres Ghana further accused Dr. Kingsley Agyeman, the Registrar for the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat for supervising what he described as a canker where scholarships are made available to the highest bidder, while countless deserving individuals languish in financial hardship.
“Pillars of Cadres Ghana therefore ask President Akufo-Addo to immediately terminate the appointment of Dr Kingsley Agyemang for the mismanagement of the Scholarship Secretariat and allocating funds to cronies belonging to the NPP and the government of the Nana Bawumia”.
Prince Henry, National Communications Officer Pillars of Cadres Ghana
He pointed out specific instances in the investigative piece by the Fourth Estate in which scholarship awards were perceived to be given to individuals with close ties to the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP).
According to him, some of the beneficiaries per the investigative piece by the Fourth Estate include the daughter of the former National Chairman of the ruling New Patriotic Party, Freddy Blay, and the son of the former Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori Atta.
The National Communications Officer of the Pillars of Cadres Ghana, Prince Henry while lamenting over the situation described it as a clear example of “nepotism and cronyism”.
He also chastised the New Patriotic Party administration under President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for what he deemed as a blatant disregard for fairness and meritocracy.
Prince Henry, the National Communications Officer for the Pillars of Cadres Ghana concluded his statement by issuing a stern ultimatum to President Akufo-Addo, demanding the immediate termination of Dr. Kingsley Agyeman’s appointment as head of the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat.
He noted that failure on the part of President Akufo-Addo to comply with the group’s demands within two weeks would result in a democratic agitation against the current administration.
Rebuttal and Accusations of Selective Reporting
However, the Director of Communications for the ruling New Patriotic Party, Richard Ahiagbah in a strong rebuttal has accused the Fourth Estate of painting a misleading picture by focusing solely on a few individuals affiliated to the ruling party who have benefited from the state scholarship.
He chastised the Fourth Estate for selectively publishing the names of the beneficiaries who are affiliated to the ruling New Patriotic Party only to cause public disaffection and negative sentiment to the ruling party.
“The Scholarship Secretariat provided the Fourth Estate with 64,411 scholarship beneficiaries between 2019 and 2020. However, they chose to report on about 20 beneficiaries to create the false impression that all scholarship beneficiaries are people associated with the NPP or government. So, what about the other beneficiaries? Are they all associated with the government or NPP?”
Richard Ahiagbah, NPP’s Director Communications
Mr Ahiagbah further lamented over what he described as a glaring omission in the investigative report, questioning why the Fourth Estate did not delve into scholarship allocations during the National Democratic Congress (NDC) regime, particularly between 2012 and 2016, when the party held power.
Contrary to the allegations of nepotism against the Registrar of the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, the New Patriotic Party Director of Communications underscored the Scholarship Secretariat’s efforts towards enhancing transparency and accessibility since 2017.
He touted the decentralization of the application process to district committees, comprising various stakeholders, including MPs and traditional authorities, which he noted has been hailed by several Ghanaians as a significant stride made by the Secretariat under the leadership of Dr Agyeman to improve the administration of the scholarships.
Despite what he touted as significant progress made by the current administration in award of scholarships under the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, Mr Ahiagbah acknowledged the necessity for continuous ongoing reforms to refine the scholarship application process.
He emphasized the need to exclude certain categories of individuals to ensure fairness and meritocracy in the award of the scholarships.
The current system, he contended lacks explicit provisions for excluding ineligible candidates, warranting immediate attention.
In a bid to rally support for the ruling New Patriotic Party, Mr Ahiagbah urged voters to vote for the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for his commitment to reform and expand the scholarship scheme.
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