Okyenhene Favours Free Education

The Okyenhene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana

By William Yaw Owusu

Accra, Thursday October 18, 2012

The Okyenhene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin has waded into the current debate of whether or not education should be free saying “we need access, affordable and quality education for our children if we are to confront the issue of illiteracy.”

“I know tomorrow, you will see and hear in the media that the Okyenhene has supported one political party over the other but the reality is that the children in Ghana urgently need education if we are to break the unending cycle of poverty.”

The Okyenhene was taking his turn at the 2^nd Eminent Chiefs Lecture which has been introduced by the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG) and other organisations to offer platform for traditional leaders to speak on issues of governance and national development.

Osagyefuo Amoatia who spoke on the topic: “Environment, Sustainable Development and Peace,” said that from the ensuing debate, it was clear that all the political parties acknowledge the fact that the country cannot develop without education but the approach has generated heated argument.

He said that from the way the country’s educational foundation is being laid it would be impossible for Ghana to compete with powerful nations without any attempt to invest heavily in education.

“Poverty should never stand in the way of God’s child to receive proper education; we must learn to provide escape from poverty. It is about time school children go to school and have access free,” the Okyenhene charged.

He said that “if government appointees particularly ministers of state are having free cars, drawing free fuel, free housing, free garden boys among other things then children should also have free education.”

The Okyenhene praised Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah’s legacy that made everybody access education free of charge and wondered why the current crop of leaders are denying “Those coming after us that same opportunity.”

“Those who benefited from it and could not hold it have done a disservice to Dr. Nkrumah,” Okyenhene affirmed.

He said that countries like Malaysia have invested heavily in education and that has enabled them to compete effectively with other powerful countries and added that by virtue of free fact that the Americans made education free for every child, Barack Obama managed to become the President of United States.

He said the surest way to abolish poverty is to abolish illiteracy adding “Quality education in Ghana has become the preserve of the rich…This is wrong!”

The Okyenhene said the educational system should be locally owned so that local people would be keen to support its development.

“Decentralise the country right now! Education must be decentralised....the centrality of government is outdated, you can’t sit in Accra and control schools in Bolga,” the Okyenhene stressed.

He rekindled the debate about whether or not District Chief Executives should be elected saying “We need to change the current system where DCEs are appointed so that through election they would be more accountable to the people who put them there.”

He said that Ghana’s problems are “Social and economic” but the solution is “Political”.

He again frowned on the widespread degradation of the environment which is having catastrophic consequences for the country saying “If we are not careful, sustainable development will one day turn into sustainable living.”

“People, who live long nowadays, do so because of better medication. Today, every 40 year old is on some kind of medication. 25 year olds cannot have babies and have had to seek medical care for fertility.”

Professor Emeritus Kwame Ninsin, Scholar-in-Residence of IDEG who moderated the programme said he was happy that the debate for this year’s elections is being shifted to particular issue (education) but regretted that “certain critical issues have been left unattended.”

Professor Florence Dolphyne, Chair person of IDEG Council of Trustees commended the Okyenhene for his untiring effort towards the protection of the environment.”