I struggled at St Augustine's College but Free SHS has now eliminated those struggles – Afenyo Markins

Alexander Afenyo Markins, Member of Parliament for Effutu, has recalled how a Ghanaian business magnate and politician, Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom helped him achieve his dreams in education.

If not for the former Progressive People’s Party’s (PPP) presidential candidate, the Deputy Majority Leader says he couldn’t have completed St. Augustine's College.

He said this while debating in support of the Free SHS policy on Thursday, March 9, in relation to the State of the Nation Address delivered on Wednesday by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

The lawmaker posited that if not for the policy, children who are from poor backgrounds like he was wouldn’t have had access to education.

According to him, Ghanaians must keep supporting the policy and not be too fixated on the amount of money that has been spent on it.

He urged Ghanaians to look at the impact of the policy.

"Free SHS has really helped the many who otherwise would not have had the opportunity to benefit from secondary education.

“Mr Speaker, I use myself as an example of how I struggled at St Augustine's College, but for the bursary introduced by Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom, I wouldn't have completed St. Augustine's College to be here serving Effutu, and I know that thousands of Ghanaians who as a result of poverty could not benefit from secondary education,” he said.

“So, therefore, Mr Speaker, if today the chorus is out there that government has spent so much, what Mr President is telling Ghanaians is that we have introduced a major social invention program which is in spite of the challenges we face as a country we are still implementing successfully,” the Deputy Majority Leader stressed.