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06.05.2018 Education

Presbyterian Church Wants Government To Address FREE SHS Problems

By GNA
Presbyterian Church Wants Government To Address FREE SHS Problems
06.05.2018 LISTEN

The Upper Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana has called on government to consider a concurrent evaluation of the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy to address its challenges and shortcomings.

The church said it was a partner to government in providing quality education to the people of Ghana, and observed that accommodation, furniture, inadequate classrooms and delay in the release of funds for feeding among others were the challenges facing the policy.

This was contained in a communique issued by the church and read at a news conference by Reverend Emmanuel Atami, Chairman of the Upper Presbytery at the end of its eighth Presbytery Session held in Garu, in the Garu District of the Upper East Region.

The event was on the theme: 'Let the earth hear: Equipping the proclaimer to go and tell.'

He said the free SHS as pursued by government as a pro-poor policy was well received by Ghanaians and further called on heads of various SHS in the country to cooperate with government to encourage a comprehensive roll out to cover every Ghanaian child.

The communique, which touched on diverse issues, expressed the Presbytery's concern on recent frequent incidences of armed robbery cases at banks, major shops, among individuals and at mobile money transfer entities which resulted into fatalities.

Reverend Atami said 'the Presbytery is appealing to the security agencies to intensify their vigilance in the country, particularly around financial institutions. Individuals and families are also encouraged to be of one's safety, taking interest in personal security and be mindful of how and where they do businesses, so as to avoid falling prey to bad people and gangsters.'

He said the eighth session noted that the happenings in Ghana were of national importance as they centred on religion, social, economic and political sectors, 'our view is that government and relevant stakeholders should take steps to address them for the general well-being of Ghanaians.'

The Chairman said the Presbytery was mindful of the fact that Ghana's Parliament had considered the Ghana - US Military Cooperation Agreement as was presented to them per their mandate, and noted that Ghanaians were not interested in the cooperation as civil society groups and political parties had expressed fears over the future consequences of the agreement, adding that the Presbytery appreciated government's security intelligence on the matter.

He said 'it is the opinion of our Presbytery that a careful reflection of the various debates for and against the agreement would be a good thing to do and should be considered.'

The Chairman called for a reflection to reach an agreement that would be in the sovereign interest of Ghana, urging government not to ignore the public outcry on the Ghana - US military deal.

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