Stop playing politics with education - Okyenhene tells politicians

The Okyenhene, Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panyin II, has blamed unnecessary political interferences in the educational system for the falling standard of education at all levels in the country.

He said if the trend continued, it would do more damage to the country and therefore called on politicians in the country, to stop playing politics with the educational system.

Addressing the 21st anniversary and the first speech and prize giving day of the Kyebi Senior High and Technical School at Kyebi on Saturday, the Okyenhene said it was time government prioritize education and push more resources into it by motivating teachers, especially those who accept postings to rural areas.

Okyenhene said to ensure quality education at all levels, it was necessary for all stakeholders to play their respective roles and therefore urged parents to consider education of their wards important investment and commit resources to it.

“Parents must be responsible enough to ensure that all children of school going age should be in school and provide them with all the necessary resources,” he stressed.

The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Victor Emmanuel Smith said the bold decision of government to expand access to secondary education by adding 119 second cycle schools to the then existing ones in the 1987 educational reforms, had yielded results.

Mr Smith said every child born on this earth was endowed with potentials or abilities which could only develop to the fullest with formal education.

Mr Smith said government had committed huge percentage of its budget to education in the form of salaries of teachers and educational staff, subsidizing school fees, providing free text books, training teachers, providing infrastructure and supporting manpower needs to facilitate teaching and learning.

He urged teachers to consider themselves as part of the solutions to the many problems that confront the youth in the country.

“They must serve as good role models for students and inspire them to rise to the highest academic levels,” he said.

The Headmaster of the school, Mr Stephen Aglah said the school was established in 1991 as one of the 119 secondary and technical schools established to absorbed products of the then junior secondary schools to expand access to secondary education.

The school has a population of 1,500 comprising 850 boys and 650 girls.

Mr Aglah mentioned some of the challenges of the school as lack of classroom blocks, lack of boarding facilities to cater for ever increasing number of boarders and lack of accommodation for teachers.

The Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South, Mr Attah Akyea donated GH¢ 3,000 to support the fund raising aimed at completing the ongoing Parents Teachers Association (PTA) projects in the school.