There is no fee Free SHS Education in Three Northern Regions

By Cletus Abaare

The

New Patriotic Party’s political wings and fortunes for the upcoming elections

are nothing much but the fee free Senior High School (SHS) education, being

promised by their Standbearer, Akufo-Addo. Though, he has not been able to

fully convince Ghanaians on how he intends to roll out his promise which is

even being contested by credible persons within his party, he still clipped his

political wings onto such illusion for

the December 7 elections.

But his rival, President Mahama thinks that

education should be made totally free from the basic level and be made progressively

free to SHS level depending on our economy as a constitutional imperative.

There is no problem with the fee Free

SHS policy espoused by Akufo-Addo and his team in the New Patriotic Party to

win political votes but the bigger problem is the linkage of this fee free SHS

policy within the framework of the so-called tested model in the three northern

Regions of Ghana. The Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions of the

country.

The NPP and their ill-informed communication

team members and other ignorance political commentators have been shamelessly

making reference to northern Ghana, arguing that there is fee free Secondary

Education.

They have attacked the personalities of

the President, John Dramani Mahama, Alban Bagbin, Health Minister, Haruna

Idrisu, Communication Minister, and other top Northern scholars and members of

the NDC of being wicked for protesting Akufo-Addo’s promise alleging that they

have enjoyed fee free education.

There has been a deafening silent from

the northern big-wigs who have been cited wrongly by the NPP of enjoying fee

free SHS education and are now rising against the same idea when it’s now going

to be implemented by the NPP across the country.

I do not know whether this is ignorance

or a complete show of laziness to cross check and freely educate members of the

NPP on such an important issue because silence means concern. I mean there is

nothing called fee free SHS education being enjoyed by any single soul in any

part of the three Northern regions. It has never happened even during the time

of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, period.

I grew up in the North, precisely Bawku

West in the Upper East and had my SSS education in the Navrongo Senior

Secondary School. And many others who attended their SSS, Middle Schools etc

never had it free like the NPP would want the whole world to believe. Never we

all paid school fees.

What

we have in the Northern is or could be termed as subsidized education and not

free education. And even the subsidized education, I would share with you fees

paid by students who gain access or admission to Senior High School today in

northern Ghana. I will attempt to juxtapose this with the fees paid by students

in the southern belt and you would judge whether it is subsidized education,

free, or total cost containment by parents. My motive is simple: to diffuse the

perception that education is free in northern Ghana.

STAY TUNE FOR THE DETAILS

Part two of many:

There

Is No

Fee

Free SHS

In

The 3

Northern

Regions

A breakdown of the fees being by fresh

student for 2012/13 academic yr

…Navrongo SHS: GH¢579

…Tamale SHS: GH¢580

…Bolgatanga SHS: GH¢575

…Nakpanduri SHS: GH¢390

By Cletus Abaare

As the Crystal Clear Lens promised its numerous readers of dissecting and exposing

the wicked lies being

peddled mischievously by members of the New Patriotic Party and led by their

Torchbearer

that scholars from the Northern part of the country have enjoyed fee free SHS

education and students from that part are still assessing free SHS education,

we are providing the breakdown for readers to make their own judgments.

Nobody in the

Northern sector had education free andno child in the three Northern regions attends

SHS Free and it is not free today in northern

Ghana. This is a basic fact.

Fresh students entering Navrongo

Senior

High School SHS are paying admission fee of GH¢579, those going to

Tamale Senior High Senior (SHS) GH¢580and those

entering the Bolgatanga SHSpay aboutGH¢575for the 2012/2013 academic year.

Whilst continuing

students in Navrongo Senior High School SHS are paying

a fee of GH¢350, those in Tamale Senior

High Senior (SHS) GH¢360 and those in the Bolgatanga SHSpay aboutGH¢345 for the

2012/2013 academic year

Today admission fee in Nakpanduri Secondary School is GH¢390 while that for

Bunkpurugu Secondary

Technical is GH¢460.5 for 2012/2013 academic year.

Continuing students in Salaga

Secondary School, Business Secondary School in Tamale and St. Francis Girls at

Jirapa in Upper West region, all government supported schools pay an average of

GHc300. These are basic facts that can be cross validated from the heads of

these institutions.

These fees are collected to cover sports, library, examination, SRC,

entertainment, bed user fee, PTA and computerfees

and the same applies the Southern sector Senior High Schools.

Others include; science development, staff incentive and teacher

motivation, development levy, speech and prize, supplementary and supplementary

literature.

The rest are: exercise books, note 3 books, NHIS, house dues,

etcetera. The only fee missing here is tuition and boarding fees. This is where

government subsidizes. Even with government subvention for boarding

accommodation, students still pay bed user fee.

Somebody should tell me how this can be classified as free SHS

education and thus qualify to be a model of a free SHS policy as being

articulated by some NPP supporters and pro-free SHS commentators.

Whether the policy can be achieved or not is a different argument but

certainly, the reference point cannot be northern Ghana. In fact, the fees paid

by students in northern Ghana equal what their counterparts in some southern

schools pay if not beyond what they pay.

So members of

the NPP who laack these basic facts about education in the North especially

with free SHS should not use northern Ghana as a reference

point because nowhere inAkufo-Addo’s proposed Free SHS Policy are parents

required to pay fees of any sort. And thus, the northern SHS educational system

cannot be a model. Otherwise, the object of the NPP free SHS policy is defeated

already without any attempt of implementation.

Stay Tuned

First Lady

Shakes

Ningo-Prampram

… as E.T

Mensah outlines unprecedented achievements in 3yrs

By Cletus Abaare

The

First Lady, Mrs. Lordina Mahama on Monday received a rousing welcome to the

Ningo-Prampram constituency by members of the National Democratic Congress when

she took her working tour to the newly created district to canvass votes for

the President and the NDC party in the upcoming general elections.

Mrs.

Lordina Mahama who was amazed by the crowd and the residents show of love for

the party and their Member of Parliament for the constituency, Hon Enoch Teye

Mensah called for an effective collaboration between chiefs and the security

agencies to sustain national stability towards Election 2012.

She

emphasised that as the embodiment of the people, the role of chiefs is

paramount in peace building since most Ghanaians hold them in high esteem.

Addressing

a mammoth durbar of the chiefs and people of constituency, at Prampram and New

Ningo, Mrs. Mahama noted that the views of chiefs have influence on their

communities whilst their opinions are well respected.

Mrs

Mahama told the chiefs that although they are barred from active partisan

politics; it does not mean that they should remain unconcerned when political

parties engage in activities that could jeopardise national stability

especially in the heat of the electioneering.

She appealed to the people to support

President John Dramani Mahama and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to

retain power to facilitate more development projects.

The

First Lady explained that it is the desire of President Mahama not only to

promote quality education but also ensure that the health needs of the people

are achieved. The First Lady said 2013 is an action year where the citizenry

would witness tremendous improvement in their standard of living through job

creation and poverty reduction interventions.

She

said all these would be a reality when the electorate vote for the NDC and

ensure that national peace is sustained before, during and after the elections.

Hon

E.T Mensah, the MP for the area and Minister of Employment and Social Welfare who

is believed to be walking easily back to parliament after the December 7 elections

emphasised that Government would not tolerate individuals and groups whose

activities could cause tension in Election 2012.

He

advised the political parties to adhere to the electoral laws and conduct their

campaigns based on development issues and admonished chiefs to take the

responsibility to sensitise their people on the need for national peace as the

government had directed the security agencies not to deal leniently with

trouble makers.

The

Minister highlighted many projects that the area has benefited for the past

three years and called on them to vote massively to maintain the NDC government

for more development.

He

noted that political stability, expansion in socio-economic infrastructure and

the unity in development that the traditional area had enjoyed for the past

years was unprecedented.

He

said road network, education and agriculture had all increased and improved. He

added that major roads connecting the area to other areas had been improved

upon.