The Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, says the Minority in Parliament is refusing to commit to the proposed Free SHS bill.
According to him, the conduct of the NDC MPs indicates their intent to thwart the bill’s approval.
“We have heard the ranking member on Parliament’s Education Committee strongly opposing the Free SHS Bill. Clearly, the NDC Minority does not want to commit itself to Free SHS,” he claimed.
Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, June 25, the Effutu MP pointed out that Akatsi North MP, Peter Kwasi Nortsu-Kotoe, has been a vocal opponent of the bill which aims to codify the Free SHS policy into law and ensure its implementation by all successive governments.
He highlighted that while the constitution includes provisions for Free SHS, they are aspirational therefore enacting a law is necessary to regulate the policy effectively.
The Majority Leader also expressed readiness to pass the bill and noted that Education Minister Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum would present it to Parliament.
He added that the Minority have been engaged on the bill however “they are adamant.”
“The NDC is not ready for the Free SHS bill. It is clear and their spokesperson on Education has been very loud…. He says he is opposed to the bill because there is some provision in the constitution,” he said.
Mr Afenyo-Markin called on the Minority to explicitly state their reasons for opposing the bill and urged them to be transparent with Ghanaians about their stance on Free SHS.
“They should tell us why they oppose the bill,” he reiterated.
Meanwhile, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Minority in parliament had earlier dismissed claims suggesting they are opposed to the government’s proposed Free Senior High School (SHS) bill.
“For the records, it was the NDC that birthed the 1992 Constitution which provided the legal framework for the introduction of Free Secondary Education in Ghana.
“Also, it was the NDC that commenced the implementation of the Free SHS programme in the year 2015 for all-day students in public senior high schools, totalling over 320,000, with a clear plan to expand coverage to include 120,000 boarding students by 2017,“ Minority leader, Dr Cassiel Ato-Forson said.