Head TeachersTo Face Sanctions

...For Charging Unapproved Fees

THE Ministry of Education has decided to sanction all heads of public second cycle institutions who flouted directives by the Ghana Education Service (GES) not to charge unapproved fees at the beginning of the 2001-2002 academic year.

A source at the ministry said a survey conducted indicated that contrary to instructions regarding the admission of fresh students to senior secondary schools, some headmasters and headmistresses charged over one million cedis per student.

The source deplored the action of the affected heads of institutions and said this has led to a situation where many students who scored good grades but whose parents could not afford exorbitant fees did not gain admission to the schools of their choices.

It pointed out that the fact that some of the heads based their admissions strictly on GES directives and charged approved rates clearly exposes their colleagues.

“There is no justification whatsoever for a handful of schools in the country to hold parents and guardians to ransom as if they were not answerable to any authority,” the source stressed.

The source mentioned specifically the imposition of certain levies which swell up the bills, and made it clear that the practice, which has been going on for too long, cannot be allowed to be perpetuated to ruin the future of hitherto clever students with poor backgrounds.

The source emphasised that the ministry would not sit unconcerned for education to be commercialised at the whims and caprices of some headmasters and headmistresses as if there was no law and order in the country.

Headmasters, the source said, are not untouchable and assured the general public that even though the admissions are over, the ministry would continue to evaluate the situation to ascertain what went wrong and punish all those found to have misconducted themselves.

It, therefore, extended invitation to members of the public to report all cases of abuse and extortions, if any, to enable the ministry to put in place measures to sanitise the system for the orderly development of education in the country.

The source said the ministry has been embarrassed by the manner in which some heads were reported to have conducted themselves and emphasised that the guilty ones would be severely dealt with.

The sanctions, it said, would include demotions as well as suspensions.

It would be recalled that the GES froze all fees charged by SSS for items necessary for school life but which have not been certified or approved by the GES Council.

Consequently, the GES directed that mosquito nets, mattresses, cookery and other necessary items must be listed in the prospectus for parents to buy instead of billing them to pay as part of school fees.

The directive stipulated that parents were to be billed for only six items at rates approved by the GES Council.

The items, which are common to both boarders and day students, are admission fees, SRC dues, entertainment fees, Science Resource Centre fee, library and examination/stationery fees.

The GES further directed that first year students, were to be billed for school uniforms and house attire for the 2001/2002 academic year, adding that, “subsequent years, parents should be allowed to purchase their own uniforms on the open market”.

The GES said boarding fees still remained at the newly-approved rate of ?1,176,000 per annum or ?392,000 a term.

It, however, directed that levies instituted by PTAs or Board of Governors must first be cleared with the Director-General of the GES through the respective regional directors.

The source regretted that these simple directives have been flouted by some deviant heads to the extent that prohibitive fees in excess of one million cedis were charged to the detriment of both students and guardians.