Deputy Minister for Education in charge of Pre-Tertiary, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, has expressed his joy in the level of interest and investment the Akufo Addo led administration has shown in the educational sector, most especially the free SHS policy.
Dr. Adutwum says until the New Patriotic Party (NPP), no administration in the history of Ghana has invested $1.5 billion into education infrastructure.
According to him, President Akufo Addo and the NPP led administration have placed some level of importance on the welfare of children and their right to education.
The Deputy Minister, who is in charge of pre-tertiary education, warned the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to desist from “toying” with the free S.H.S policy.
His caution follows several declarations by the flagbearer of the NDC, John Dramani Mahama that his administration will scrap the current double-track system and modify it with what he describes as a more beneficial and better system.
But the MP for Bosomtwi in the Ashanti Region believes the current system is serving more purpose than what the NDC would introduce.
“We won’t review the free education policy. When it comes to education, look at it through the lens of education policy. Education now has to drive our transformation agenda.” he said.
“You can’t just toy with it and make it a political football because it’s the efforts of an opponent.”
Dr. Adutwum urged the NDC to applaud President Akufo-Addo instead of trying to shed a negative light on his efforts and the free Senior High School policy. He continued to say the free SHS policy is going transform the lives of the current young generation and this transformation will linger on.
He advised the NDC to stop politicking everything that comes from the NPP. They should rather take their time to review the policies, commend the NPP for the good ones, and suggest ways to make the “bad ones” better. He believes if this culture is adopted by all, Ghana will be a better place to live.
“Give Akufo Addo some credit for coming up with the innovation, before saying probably you would have done it differently. It is not about the NDC liking free S.H.S or double track, but rather understanding the facts behind it, whether you like it or not, as a politician, it’s your responsibility to understand the facts.”
The Deputy Education Minister also registered his pleasure in the good results of the 2019/2020 Senior High School Graduates and said this goes a long way to tell Ghanaians and the critics of the free SHS policy that, the double track system is not causing students to lag behind in their studies.
“The WAEC results came and our children didn’t lose out. So if you have something that is terrible, how can it give you a better outcome?”
