President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Angel Carbonu says the Government must prioritize investing massively into the free Senior High School (SHS) policy if they (Government) cherish it.
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According to him, the best way to sustain any investment is to pump in a lot of resources just as one will do any relationship. “My grandfather advised me when I was growing up that romance without finance is ignorance. What I am trying to say is that whatever you love or cherish, you have to make an effort to put resources in it. There is no freebies in this world and the most sustainable projects is not done on freebies. The Free SHS needs to be sustained with money and it is either the parents pay directly for the policy or government bears the cost as promised and does so in a timely fashion”.
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He reiterated that with money being the foundation and basis of the free SHS policy, “the question now is, where is the money coming from?”
To him, if funds for running the programe is inadequate but the government yet still wants to continue with it, “then the government has to get the money and not exchange quality for expediency. Their main focus should be on sourcing for funds for the programe”, he said in an interview with Samuel Eshun on the Happy Morning Show aired on e.TV Ghana and Happy98.9FM.
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Commenting on the recent difficulties suffered by both students and teachers under the free SHS policy, he revealed that most Senior High Schools suffer an empty budget whenever school resumes.
“What has changed is that in the past, students were paying fees directly to the school and that meant the schools had the resources to run their affairs. With this system in place, the schools then make just a few requests for governemt resources and support but now the case is different. Now students go to school on an empty budget and if money, food items and books do not arrive before school reopens, then, we will always experience our current situation”.
He disclosed that because Government is not promptly meeting its commitment to the free SHS programe, “some schools expect financial commitment from parents because that is the only way they are assured of money and resources to run their affairs”.
The National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) has called for a national stakeholder engagement to analyse and review the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy.
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They assert the dialogue is a way of improving upon the system.
