'Free SHS saved me GHC4,500 on fees' – Breman Essiam Chief

The Paramount Chief of Breman Essiam in the Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam, Odeifuor Afoakwa III, has expressed his appreciation to the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, for the implementation of the Free Senior High School Policy.

According to Odeifuor Asankwa III, the Free SHS policy is not a discriminatory policy and has unified all Ghanaians in terms of its benefits.

“I am a beneficiary of the Free SHS policy since I have two children enrolled. One is in Form 2, and the other is in Form 1. I didn’t pay a dime,” he said.

The Breman Essian Chief continued, “When the one in Form 2 was at the JHS level, you had not come to power, so I saved against his education. So, when you introduced the Free SHS programme, I had managed to save GHC4,500. I used this money to buy 150 bags of cement to construct my building. Mr. President, God richly bless you!”

Odeifuor Afoakwa III made this known on Thursday, 25th July, 2019, when a durbar of Chiefs was held in honour of President Akufo-Addo in Essiam, in the Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam constituency, at the commencement of the President’s 3-day tour of the Central Region.

The Free SHS policy, he added, has resulted in an increased enrolment, necessitating the Double Track System, and has “led to graduates with education background from the University of Cape Coast (UCC) and University of Education, Winneba (UEW) who were at home unemployed, including my own nephew, to be employed as a teacher at Fiaseman Secondary School.”

The Breman Essian Chief noted that monies which, hitherto, would have been used to pay for school fees of a few children of the town are now being channeled into developmental projects of the town.

“This education policy will lead to Ghana producing so many graduates in future. You are building a confident, elite society for the future. Every nation’s future is contingent on its youth, and not every youth is a youth unless you have been educated formally,” he stressed.

Odeifuor Afoakwa III was confident that “in future, Ghana will develop because many more will be able to write and read to enable them to work without hustles or supervision. Mr. President, God bless you abundantly.”

On the “One Million Dollar, One Constituency” pledge of the Government, he indicated that his town has been a beneficiary of the projects being implemented under the policy.

“The programme started and in my town here, there is rig digging the ground for an ultra-modern toilet system to be constructed. This is not found only in my town but in other parts of the district, Enyan Denkyira, Abaasa, Ajumako, Enyan Mim, and many other places,” he said.

The Breman Essiam Chief stressed that “if anybody tells you that one constituency one million dollars promise has not taken effect, tell that person it is not true because I am a living witness to them.”

Odeifuor Afoakwa III urged all Ghanaians to support President Akufo-Addo and his government, and “eschew all prejudices, and support all the policies that the President is implementing. Because, at the end of his 8 years as President, the results will be to the benefit of us all as Ghanaians.”