NAPO will collapse educational system; he talks by heart – Kofi Adams

The National Organizer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Kofi Adams, has launched a scathing attack at the Minister of Education, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh saying if the latter’s conduct is not checked he’ll collapse Ghana’s educational system.

According to him, the Minister, is not qualified to hold such sensitive position, adding that he ‘talks by heart’ whenever he gets the least opportunity to speak on matters relating education in this country.

Mr Adams comment comes after Dr Matthew Opoku-Prempeh, popularly known as NAPO, jabbed ex President John Mahama over his comments on the ruling government’s flagship Free SHS policy.

According to him, Mr. Mahama has absolutely no grounds to make those statements when his performance was below par as far as the progressive free SHS program under his administration is concerned.

Mr Maahama addressing some party faithful at the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Unity walk at Somanya over the weekend criticized government’s ‘rush’ implementation of the Free SHS policy. He stated that the current implementation of the free SHS policy if not properly handled could derail the entire purpose of the program.

“It will do the government good if we have a stakeholders conference and agree on the pace of implementation to free funds for other important projects like the ‘one district one factory and the one village one dam programmes,” Mahama said.

He then accused the government of pushing all available resources into funding the free SHS programme to the extent that government now had no funds for the District Assemblies common fund, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), GETFUND and other statutory payments.

Reacting to the claims on Accra-based Peace FM Monday morning, Matthew Opoku-Prempeh likened Mr. Mahama to the hypocritical Pharisees in the Bible who made it a point to criticize every good deed of Jesus and yet found themselves doing worse. He accused Mr. Mahama of failing to provide a single textbook to any institution under his two-year progressive Free SHS program.

“Mahama as Vice President and President for eight years did not provide Senior High Schools with a single textbook, let alone when he started his progressive free SHS…Today, we have had a government who has provided the Senior High Schools with textbooks, exercise books and notebooks but John Mahama is still not pleased with it” he added.

But responding to Dr. Opoku Prempeh’s claims, Kofi Adams said the Minister put out a lot of untruths, adding that he (Adams) was personally involved in sharing the textbooks to student during Mahama’s tenure.

“I took part in distributing text books and laptops to the students, in fact all the text books that are being shared today were printed under ex President Mahama, NAPO (Minister) will collapse our education system, the effects of what he’s doing we’ll not feel it now, tt would be felt 10 years time. Clearly, this gentleman is not qualified to be Minister of Education. Look, he talks by heart whenever he gets the opportunity and that is unbecoming of a Minister.”