The Education Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has refuted the claims attributed to him to the effect that basic and second cycle school headteachers, who oversee failure rates of 90 percent and above will be sacked.
Dr. Opoku Prempeh, as he rubbished the claims, also vowed to resign if there is any proof of such claims.
“The person who alleges I said it should prove it. If he proves it, I will resign as a minister. I haven’t said that anywhere. It is the duty of our regulators and the Ghana Education Service who should drive standards and performance in schools,” he said.
Dr. Opoku Prempeh was addressing heads of high schools in Kumasi, where he reportedly said they would have to justify their continued stay in their positions to the Ghana Education Service (GES) if they superintend poor examination results.
The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), for instance, expressed its displeasure with the comments which it considered as a threat.
GES backs Education Minister
But the Ghana Education Service (GES) , rose to the defence of the Minister of Education saying his comments, which was a charge to headteachers in Kumasi, were wrongly misconstrued as threats.
In an interview with Citi News, the Public Affairs Officer of the GES, Reverend Jonathan Bettey, said “the Minister for Education was addressing the heads and teachers involved, especially teachers who under-performed, and he did not use the word sack. The GES has also not decided to sack any of our teachers on that issue.”
Rev. Bettey explained further that, the Education Minister’s plans were tied to the New Patriotic Party government’s plans to improve the working conditions of teachers.
“He was saying that there wouldn’t be any justification for any of our headmasters who would not perform if all they need are given them, because the president promised to motivate our teachers.”
“The minister will not order a sack and one will be sacked. The order must pass through a lot of processes to prove that this person deserves to be sacked.”
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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana