MoE disrespecting Parliament over BECE students SHS going date – MP
A Ranking Member of Parliament’s Education Committee, Peter Nortsu-Kotoe has described as disrespectful, the Ministry of Education’s insistence for first-year second-cycle school students to report to school on December 4, 2023, despite Parliament’s petition for the date to be postponed.
The Member of Parliament for Akatsi North Constituency in an interview with JoyNews Desk said such an attitude must not be tolerated, adding, “For me, the refusal of the Ministry to listen to the Speaker is also disrespectful to the House.”
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His comment comes after the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin urged the Education Ministry to reschedule the reporting date for students who sat for the 2023 BECE and to be admitted as first-year Senior High School students.
Mr Bagbin on behalf of Members of Parliament, parents and stakeholders proposed that students report to school on the first week of January 2024, adding that many students are now picking prospectuses from the school’s enrolling them.
The Ministry of Education (MoE) insisting on the December 4, 2023 reporting date says the 2023/2024 academic calendar which contained the first-year second-cycle school students reporting day was put out several weeks earlier.
“The academic calendar was put out several weeks before now, therefore parents were supposed to make adequate preparations prior to the reopening. The first-year students who are unable to report on the first day will not automatically lose their slots,” A spokesman for the Ministry, Kwasi Kwarteng said.
Mr Nortsu-Kotoe responding to the Public Relations Officer’s assertion questioned why the Ministry is in a hurry for first-year students to report to school on December 4 when they have about 108,000 placement issues to be resolved.
The Ranking Member of Parliament’s Education Committee argued that the prospective Free SHS students must not be overworked while suggesting that the reopening date be shifted to January for the students to rest.
“If you’re saying that you have given a directive and there would be no change, why are you making it so difficult for parents and teachers to prepare for proper academic work?” the Akatsi North Constituency lawmaker quizzed.