Radio and TV Personality Nana Ansah Kwao has cautioned government to be weary of their flagship policy; the Free Senior High School which they implemented September 2017 explaining that the programme will stem chaos and conflict in the country.
Speaking as a guest on Kwaku Sintim Misa’s “Bo Me Nkomo” on Sapphire TV, Nana Ansah Kwao IV who also doubles as the Paramount Chief of Adumasa in the Eastern region maintained that the policy should have been a “Free Skills Education” in order to cater for poor people to who are unable to take their wards through school due to the several school materials they are to make available at the various levels of education.
“…I keep on saying that free education is what will fuel chaos and conflict in the country… It should have been free skills education. If you say you’re poor and can’t take your ward through school, why should government use the taxpayer’s money to fund the ward to study for example general arts when several ‘rich’ people’s children are unable to get jobs after completing the specific arts. It would be best to fund your ward to learn specific skills or vocational skills such as agriculture, animal husbandry, electric wiring, photography etc to a very high standard in order to become readily marketable upon completion.
He indicated that it was not prudent to keep churning students in the theoretical line of studies for majority of them to only be viable in the public institutions when older folks who reach retirement ages sign affidavits to slash their date of birth.
The Chief cited former governor of the Gold Coast, Gordon Guggisberg in 1925 who complained that the average Ghanaians feels that upon completion of tertiary education all handy jobs are beneath him/her. He stressed that it was important for Ghanaians to embrace practical jobs in order get out of the unemployment bracket.
Nana Ansah Kwao IV noted that the high incidence of unemployed graduates in the system will result in the frustration and eventual chaos when the youth decide to take matters in their hands.
He therefore charged government to consider upgrading the national policy into one which will develop or enhance the skills of students who are in school to help them obtain employment upon completion. He also admonished the executive to liaise with the Ghana Statistical Service to identify the sectors where employment is available to make it easier for those in schools to find jobs.
Below is the full interview
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