Churches may rise against government over mission schools - Peace Council

The Chairman of the National Peace Council Most. Rev.Prof. Emmanuel Asante has called for proper partnership between government and religious bodies in managing mission schools in the country.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 42nd Annual Conference of Managers of Education Units (COMEU) in Koforidua on Tuesday, Prof. Asante said the current situation where government overrides the missions in running the schools is problematic and unhealthy.

He was speaking under the theme: "Achieving Academic Excellence in the Educational Unit Schools-Prospects and Challenges".

"You often hear statements that government must give back the schools, I think that statement is misleading, the issue is the Church and religious bodies in partnership with the government and the government providing the logistics, and the religious bodies managing the institutions, What we are yearning for is proper partnership...we are facing a situation where the unit managers have been pushed out and some directors do not even want to hear anything from our unit mangers and that to me is a problem.

"One of these days the churches and the religious bodies will rise up but that should not be the case so I am saying this for the press to add to this and to say partnership means, it is the responsibility of the government to provide logistics," he said.

He said legal recognition under ordinance has been given to partnership between religious bodies and government in missions schools.