Free SHS: Review is not cancellation, look up the word in the dictionary if you’re confused – Mahama to NPP

John Dramani Mahama, the presidential candidate of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), has taken a swipe at the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) for misinterpreting his decision to review the policy of free senior high school education as its cancellation.

The former president said he was shocked that people who consider themselves learned members of the governing party could mistake review for cancellation.

Mahama thus charged the Akufo-Addo-led administration to consult a dictionary if they were unsure about the definition of the word "review."

Addressing a gathering at Agona Asafo, John Mahama reiterated his decision to review the policy to make it better in his first hundred days.

“I have consistently spoken about free SHS and the need to review it. Whenever I mention it, the NPP and communicators distort it as a cancellation. They politicise the subject. They should look up the word in the dictionary to check if it is a cancellation. There is a need for a review, which is why I mentioned that within the first 100 days, we will conduct a stakeholder engagement to discuss how we can effectively review the policy for better execution. “The policy is good, but the government must implement it properly so that we can reap the full benefits,” he said.

According to the former president, he will conduct a holistic review of the entire education sector, particularly the free SHS policy.

He promised to do this together with every stakeholder, including parents and teachers, among others.

He acknowledged that the policy was a fine idea, but swiftly added that the government had failed to effectively implement it.

He stated that, while SHS was free, the expense parents incurred in purchasing prospectuses and other related fees was prohibitively high.

Mahama added that the scheme was beset with various obstacles, including inadequate student meals in our high schools.

“We have free SHS, but the cost of free SHS to parents is expensive compared to when students paid fees. The food at our schools is appalling. The food served to our students is unhealthy," he remarked.