Nana Addo does not understand modern day education – Group

A group calling itself Students for Mahama has called on Ghanaian students to reject Nana Addo Dankwah Akuffo Addo, the flagbearer of the NPP for what they describe as his lack of appreciation of educational challenges in the country.

At a press conference in Accra, the group catalogued a number of areas in the educational sector that the three time flag bearer has erred and demanded that students do not entrust their futures into his hands.

Key amongst the issues raised in their press statement is his recent comment on the conversion of polytechnics to technical universities; something that the group describes as crass ignorance of the process.

The group explained the issue by highlighting the mechanisms involved in the conversion process while stressing that it is the vision of the President to convert all the Polytechnics to Technical Universities in due time.

Further, the group made a strong case for government's decision to cancel allowances at the Colleges of Education by explaining how it has allowed a surge in enrollment and an increase in infrastructure at that level.

They therefore described Nana Addo's policy of restoring Teacher trainee allowance as one of those rush rhetorics which when executed will stall progress made in closing the teacher-student deficit by bringing back the quota system of admission in Colleges of Education.

In an interview with Daily Post a Communications Team member for the Group, Benjamin Alpha, explained that the students of Ghana must subject promises made by candidates who seek the high office of President to critical scrutiny and further asserted that Nana Addo's utterances on educational issues does not portray him as someone who has an in depth appreciation of issues concerning education.

"At a critical stage in our national life where the biggest problem facing the educational sector is access, we find it misdirected that a presidential candidate will focus on giving populist promises to students.

"What he usually proposes or speak of are not the answer to the existential challenges in the system. We the students must know that, we play a critical role in contributing meaningfully to educational discourse in the country. We have bigger challenges. We need a President who understand these challenges and also have solutions which are of contemporary relevance. Nana Addo has failed to show both and we cannot gamble with our future," he said.

The group is an independent mass movement of students from various levels rallying support for the second term bid of John Dramani Mahama.