A National Executive Committee (NEC) member of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has sarcastically called on the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to effect the arrest of President John Dramani Mahama if they (opposition party) believe the president’s announcement of his intention to roll out a free Senior High School (SHS) education policy was a criminal act.
The NDC NEC member insists the ruling NDC government is only going by provisions enshrined in the Constitution which mandates successive governments to progressively make SHS free for Ghanaians.
“…what law in Ghana states that President Mahama cannot announce that from next year he wants to start free SHS, assuming without admitting that free SHS policy is not captured in the NDC manifesto? Is the Constitution of Ghana for NPP? Is the decision of the President to implement the free SHS unconstitutional?” quizzes Solomon Nkansah, National Propaganda Secretary of the ruling NDC.
Meanwhile, National Chairman of NPP, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey has stated that the party’s reservation is founded in what has been observed as persistent failure of the ruling government to successfully implement any meaningful policy.
The NPP has accused government of stealing the free SHS idea and have even raised red flags over the proposed policy. The opposition party says their reservation is founded in what has been observed as persistent failure of the ruling government to successfully implement any meaningful policy, compounded by the poor record of the NDC in maintaining policies they inherited from the NPP.
But Solomon Nkansah, speaking on Okay Fm’s ‘Ghana Decides’ program, cynically urged the opposition NPP to call for the arrest of President Mahama if they have any reason to conclude that the President’s action on free SHS was criminal.
“…..If it is criminal act, then NPP should report President Mahama to the police. NPP at their best are always against themselves; when they expanded the SHS, where did they get the resources to do it? Where they did get the funds to start the Health Insurance Scheme?…they should stop behind the free SHS policy being their property and hurling abusive language at the president since the decision (to roll out the policy in 2015/16), is in the best interest of Ghanaian youth,” Solomon Nkansah said.