Naana Opoku-Agyemang was the 'worst Education Minister in Ghana's history - Minister

Minister of Education, Matthew Opoku Prempeh has fired shots at former President and NDC Presidential candidate, John Dramani Mahama over his comments that he started free Senior High School (SHS).

The former President, addressing a gathering at Tuobong in Upper East Region, said; “We started the programme and the NPP came and continued it. Unfortunately, the implementation has been very poor, and so it ended us in double track. I assure you my countrymen, that within one year, I will cancel the double track''.

“All the Community Day Schools we were building, 200 of them, we are going to finish them so that all the children can get schools to attend.

“With the Community Day Schools we are building, we are going to add dormitory blocks for girls and boys so that those who don’t come from the community where the school is sited if they choose that school and they are posted there, they will be able to get a decent place to live and learn," he added.

But Hon. Opoku-Prempeh, in an interview with Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM's ''Kokrokoo'', stressed that Mr. Mahama left Ghanaians with tonnes of challenges that crippled the education sector, hence wondering when he started the free SHS policy.

According to him, the then Education Minister, now Vice Presidential candidate of the NDC, Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang woefully failed Ghanaians and that it is purely a lie for Mr. Mahama to claim he launched the free SHS.

"If President Mahama says he started free SHS, the Naana Opoku-Agyemang who is his Vice Presidential candidate has been the worst Education Minister since the advent of the country called Ghana . . . Today, I have the summary of the key challenges and pending issues that Naana Opoku-Agyemang handed over to me.

''Listen to what she said; Outstanding Social Intervention Programme for 2016 - feeding grant for Colleges of Education, they incurred a debt but she didn't pay. She didn't also defray the debt for Special Schools which are 28 in number in Ghana. She didn't pay Senior High School subsidy. Progressive free Senior High School, she didn't pay for two years. She wrote all these...'', he stated.

"So, if there is Senior High School subsidy, what do you call free SHS for you to tell us you started free SHS?'' he queried Mahama.