Government cautions school heads over unapproved fees

Heads of Senior High Schools (SHS) have been cautioned to charge the Ghana Education Service (GES) stipulated fees to avoid being sanctioned by government.

Mr Alex Kofi Kyeremeh, Deputy Minister of Education in charge of Pre-tertiary Education gave the caution at the weekend during a durbar to climax a year-long 50th anniversary celebration of the Techiman SHS at Techiman in the Brong-Ahafo Region.

The event, on the theme: “Techiman Senior High School at 50 – A New Image in terms of Discipline and Academic Work towards Perfection and Excellence,” was attended by past students from all walks of life, traditional rulers and other stakeholders.

Mr Kyeremeh, an old student of the school and Member of Parliament for Techiman South stated that “the current GES approved fees for boarding students is Ghc437.00 while that of day students is Ghc230.00”.

The Deputy Minister said some headmasters and headmistresses are collecting as much as Ghc1,500.00 or more as fees.

Mr Kyeremeh said the implementation of government’s policy for every child of school going-age to be in SHS is on course.

Construction of 50 out of additional 200 SHSs for the realisation of the policy had started with the acquisition of lands, the Deputy Minister said while drawings and designs are in the process.

Mr Moses Kofi Boakye, Headmaster, said discipline continues to remain a major obstacle to the academic advancement of the school.

He said the dynamism of the society coupled with modernisation and technology had made the present day youth so much sophisticated in their attitudes and behaviour.

Mr Boakye observed “it seems policy-makers had turned a blind eye to this situation as they continue to hold on to old-fashioned laws/rules and regulations for schools which do little to control the menace of indiscipline behaviour among the youth”.

He expressed the need for a critical look at redesigning rules and regulations to nurture the growing child.

The school was established in 1963 under the then Ghana Education Trust policy by the late Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s First President.

It was formally opened on November 1 that year with 71 students, comprising 53 boys and 18 girls. It now, has a student population of 2,500, excluding the fresh students for the 2013/2014 academic year.