Monies people steal to buy cars for their girlfriends can cater for free SHS - Kofi Bediako

The debate over the funding for the free senior high school has not seized with different views and opinions coming from individuals and organizations.

The sustainability and release of funds speedily has become the major topic for discussions.

A retired Ghanaian diplomat, KB Asante has argued that the free SHS policy announced to start in September cannot be feasible.

The free public SHS education, Nana Addo said, was aimed at building an educated populace for speedy national development and progress.

But KB Asante believes the implementation is not sustainable adding that parents should be responsible for the education of the children they bring on earth, not the state.

However, Mr. Kofi Amponsah Bediako says the monies people are stealing to buy cars for their girlfriends can fund or cater for the free SHS policy.

He was speaking in an interview with Kwame Tutu on Rainbow radio 87.5Fm.

Education he explained is valuable hence government must invest heavily in giving its citizens especially the youth quality education. Other countries like Sri Lanka he noted has been able to implement free education.

‘’When you plan to implement a policy like the free education, people begin to argue that, it will not be feasible but if we should block all the loopholes, the embezzlement, and corruption, we will be able to implement the policy. The money some of our leaders are stealing to buy cars for their girlfriends will fund the policy of free senior high school.’’

The former press secretary to former President Kufour and the current PRO for Ghana Standards Authority made a strong case that, the policy is more than feasible.

Some 1.6 million students between the ages of 15-17 will be benefiting from the policy and an estimated GHS 3.6 billion is needed to fund the policy annually.

President Nana Akufo-Addo delivering a speech at the 60th Anniversary celebration of Okuapeman School announced that the policy implementation will take off in September.

The president said “By free SHS, we mean that in addition to tuition, which is already free, there will be no admission fees, no library fees, no science centre fees, no computer laboratory fees, no examination fees, no utility fees.

There will be free textbooks, free boarding and free meals and day students will get a meal at school for free.

“Free SHS will also cover agricultural, vocational and technical institutions at the high school level.’’

Meanwhile, the Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Maafo has indicated that government’s free senior high school will be funded by the Heritage Fund.

The Senior Minister at a forum yesterday said the NPP government will will review the Petroleum Management Act to allow for the use of the Heritage Fund to finance its ambitious Free Senior High School (SHS) policy.

He noted that doing so will guarantee the development of the country particularly the youth.

“We have to make an amendment to say that X percent of the heritage fund, or the petroleum fund will be used to support second cycle education. If we think that industry require a certain stimulus that will enable jobs to be created and you are creating a job to build Ghana. You can look at it and put in a certain amount. We are [also] looking at agriculture.”

“Whatever is important to support the future development of this country. Particularly when you talk about the youth. The youth is the future, heritage is the youth, we would make certain relevant amendments to make sure that the economy benefits from the petroleum act,” Osafo Maafo said.