FCUBE saga: PPP goes to Supreme Court today

The Supreme Court is expected today to give reasons for dismissing the suit brought by the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) against the government over the implementation of the Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE).

It would be recalled that a seven-member panel led by Justice Julius Ansah of the Supreme Court deferred reasons for their decision today, July 28, 2015 where in May this year, it threw out the PPP’s suit.

The PPP in that suit was seeking an order from the Supreme Court to compel the Mahama-led administration to implement the FCUBE policy which is enshrined in the country’s constitution.

Article 25(1)(a) of the 1992 constitution says: “All persons shall have the right to equal educational opportunities and facilities and with a view to achieving the full realisation of that right-basic education shall be free, compulsory and available to all.”

The PPP subsequently argued that since Ghana returned to constitutional democracy in 1992, successive governments had failed to enforce that constitutional provision.

And by that failure, it maintained that it had resulted in many children roaming the streets instead of being in school.

The leaders of the party, including its 2012 flag-bearer, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, who were in court on that day, however, expressed disappointment in the decision of the court.

Dr. Nduom was reported to have said: “the constitutional provision on FCUBE is unambiguous and I wonder what interpretation the highest court of the land is going to proffer and for which reason the case has been dismissed.”

Speaking to the National Secretary of the party, Kofi Asamoah-Siaw, yesterday in Accra, he indicated that the PPP would be more than delighted to study the reasons for the dismissal of its application to inform the party of its next line of action.

Consequently, he pointed out that the battle to secure free and compulsory education for Ghanaians “has just begun.”

According to the PPP national scribe, the compulsory aspect of the basic education should be enforced by all governments since education holds the key to the nation’s development.

“The country will not have the full benefits from our abundant natural resources if we do not educate our children to meet the challenges of the rapidly changing world,” he stated.

The PPP, he said, was determined to pursue the compulsory aspect of education to its logical conclusion.

“Our education policy for the consideration of the people of Ghana is Free Compulsory Universal Education from Kindergarten to Senior High School,” he affirmed.

He added: “We believe that it is the responsibility of the government of Ghana to take care of the future economic fortunes of its people and it is only “education for all” that will make that possible.”

He contended that Ghana could only give hope to the current and unborn generations only when she created a fairer society with opportunities for everyone through education.