A former Deputy Education Minister, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour has cautioned the new National Democratic Congress (NDC) government against abolishing the double track system.
Speaking to GHOne TV, the Member of Parliament for Assin South argued that any move by the government will send over 500,000 students enrolled in the various Senior High Schools home.
“Abolishing the double track system today would mean sending 500,000 students home. Our current infrastructure can support only 1 million out of the 1.5 million SHS students,” Rev. John Ntim Fordjour said.
His concern comes taking into consideration a campaign promise of the new government in the run-up to the 2024 general election.
It can be recalled that during the NDC’s manifesto launch in Tamale, then-flagbearer John Dramani Mahama described the double-track system as obnoxious, stressing that it must be removed.
“We’re going to improve the Free SHS. We’re going to work hard to remove the obnoxious double-track system so that all our children can go to school at the same time and close at the same time.
“We don’t want a situation where our children come home and stay for four months before they return to school,” President Mahama assured at the time.
Although the NDC plans to remove the double-track system, the government wants to put in place infrastructure before proceeding.