Minister for Education, Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh last week on Asempa FM expressed disappointment in his predecessor, Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang.
According to him, the educationist who should know better left behind huge arrears which could collapse the sector.
Napo, as he is popularly called, cited among other things 4.7 million feeding grant for special schools, 36 million subsidies for Senior High School (SHS), 155 million Northern scholarship as some of the legacies Prof. Opoku Agyeman left behind.
He also disclosed that there were no documents supporting the supposed 200 schools the erstwhile Mahama administration promised to build.
Napo could not fathom why someone who is a former Vice Chancellor could superintendent over such incompetence.
In response, Special Aide to former President John Mahama, Joyce Bawa Mogtari has sought to know the kind of arrogance that would make a "trainee-Minister who is still struggling to understand the mandate of his office," declare that a "world-renowned and experienced educationist" does not know anything about education.
According to her, Professor Opoku-Agyemang cannot be said to be the usual politician, but of course, one who has a firm belief in the Social Democratic Philosophy of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
To her, Napo's comments are borne more out of arrogance and the realisation that the standards set by Professor Opoku-Agyemang at the Education Ministry are far higher for him to stand up to, let alone surpass.
Read below the full statement from the office of the former President.
IN DEFENCE OF PROFESSOR NAANA JANE OPOKU- AGYEMANG
I am still not sure what it is that supposedly provoked our Minister for Education, Matthew Opoku Prempeh, to embarrass himself and cause people to lower further their perception of him, with his public insults and vulgarism against Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang.
They are from two different political ideologies, yes, but must that by itself cause a person appointed by the State and who should be a role model to others, to behave and publicly, in that manner.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang cannot be said to be your usual politician, but off course one who has a firm belief in the Social Democratic Philosophy of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Of the many appointees of state over the years, Professor Opoku-Agyemang, Ghana’s first female Vice Chancellor of a University, is thought among the few that did not only bring dignity to their positions but demonstrated that public service officers or political appointees can be focussed, measured, committed and dedicated to the job of implementing the vision of the leader/ President in a manner helps improve the lives of the Ghanaian people.
The academic credentials of the learned Professor, her contributions to society and her work as Minister for Education can obviously be fact-checked.
Why Hon. Opoku Prempeh will think and even want to describe as her as an embarrassment and one who does not understand education is simply mind boggling!
I guess his comments are borne more out of arrogance and the realisation that the standards set by Professor Opoku-Agyemang at the Education Ministry are far higher for him to stand up to, let alone surpass.
Here is a brilliant female scholar, a professional, an educationist and a patriotic Ghanaian whose diligent works and strong educational reforms have raised Ghana’s image in education to enviable heights.
During her many years of academic journey, Professor Opoku-Agyemang served in a number of important roles including Head of the English Department, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Dean of the Schools of Graduate Studies and Research, all of the University of Cape Coast.
Her hard work and proven competence culminated in her becoming the first female Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast and the first female in Ghana’s history to ascend to that position.
Of course, her pioneering ascension to the Office of Vice Chancellor, the highest position in academia, has served and continues to serve as a major inspiration for other females that they can rise to any position by merit once they set their minds to it.
Ten years ago, in March of 2007, when only five (5) scholars from across the world were selected to deliver presentations during the commemoration of the 200th Anniversary of the Abolition of Slavery at the United Nations Headquarters, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang was one of those five (5) prominent scholars. Her selection to this high-level event as an eminent scholar from Ghana was certainly no disgrace to her country. Indeed, she made her country proud.
As Minister for Education, Professor Opoku-Agyemangwould continue in her excellence. In only four years, she led the Ministry to introduce critical reforms and took charge ofthe biggest investment in education in Ghana’s history, from the basic to the tertiary levels.
Among many other interventions, the Ministry of Education introduced a historic BECE Private Candidates Policy and a policy of zero tolerance for teacher absenteeism, which saw a decline in absenteeism from 27% to a low of 7%.
Her Ministry also worked vigorously to end the shift system, by supervising the expansion of infrastructure and provision of required facilities at the basic level.
Again, under her stewardship as Minister for Education, Ghana for three (3) continuous years, topped the West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations (WASSCE) and in one of those years, all the three best WASSCE students came from Ghana.
The irony is that, if it were not for her ministry’s decision to expand infrastructure in existing public secondary schools and also the construction of absolutely new Community Day Senior High Schools (SHS), which have created enrolment space for at least 50,000 SHS students, it would have been difficult, if not impossible for the NPP government to roll out their Free SHS programme.
Is this a woman Dr. Opoku Prempeh should insultingly call an ‘embarrassment’ and a ‘disgrace’? Is this somebody who does not understand education? Is it because Professor Opoku-Agyemang is a humble and quiet person who does not wear her professorship in education on her sleeve?
What kind of arrogance would make a trainee- Minister who is still struggling to understand the mandate of his office, declare that a world-renowned and experienced educationist does not know anything about education?
One cannot help but recognise that such arrant disrespect for professional women, is not an individual character trait of Opoku Prempeh, but appears to be a reflection of the ruling Party, for if not, President Nana Akufo-Addo would have ensured that his Minister withdraws his embarrassing insult, and apologises to the former Minister.
But, didn’t the whole party and its senior officials sanction such public diatribes on the Chair of the Electoral Commission, Charlotte Osei?
Listening to Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh speak on radio in defence of his actions makes one wonder the leadership he will be bringing to our educational sector, and whether we can expect anything better from the sector.
Our professionals, our women deserve better.
Joyce B. Mogtari
Accra
Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana
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Ndc always set their questions and answer them. We are talking about debt left behind and you the ndc are talking about academic credentials.
The question is not about her academic achievements. It is about a debt she left at the Ministry. Why not advert yourself to that. The bottomline or the fact is that she has left the debt for us to pay off. This PR work you are doing is tangential and irrelevant.
Joyce you are rather being arrogant and you should watch out for that. Calling someone a trainee minister? were you born a minister? it is only under John Mahama that a person like you will become a minister be paid by the tax payer's money. spare us this rash about she being a woman to court sympathy...
hahahahaha, this punchline is heavy, what! a trainee-minister paa, from impotent bawumia to trainee-minister napo. what is next?
It does not usually happen for teachers to excel at the political arena especially if they are professors so iam not surprise to hear this. And lets stop to attack the truth when its being sed.
When f001s do not have a solid, intelligent response they resort to saying all manner of inane things . This is nothing to do with the former minister being a woman so people should stop that nons3nse of she being attacked because she is a woman.If the minister had been a man nothing would have changed the fact that huge debts had been left in the ministry.Again being a professor does not necessarily make you a good administrator. A debt of 10 million cedis was left at the ministry for the supply of chalk. CHALK for Christ sake. That amount of chalk should supply all the schools in Ghana for 20 years.Various hefty sums have also been left for this administration to pay off.Now when they hear that scholarships and other payments for SHS are in arrears they are jumping for joy and rubbing their hands with glee.Never in my life have I seen such a congregation of evil as the NDC.
Napo,please you are a minister for education and not mis education. Are you aware the number of people this woman have impacted as a lecturer? please don't let us denigrate our heroes just because of politics, knowing my professor, she will not respond to these rubbish, she is too decent to descend to your level. Deep down your heart I know you are ashamed, Prof will surely leave you to your shame
Joyce the test of the so called unprecedented investment in education from primary to tertiary is been seen now.Despite the investment an increase of about 100,000 new students has resulted in over crowding in our classrooms,dormitories,students running shifts at the dining halls etc.In fact the test has exposed the NDC big time.Just yesterday CHASS head is threatening premature closure of SHSs because of the arrears left behind by NDC.Joyce stop the gender war as started by Betty.Stick to the argument and provide answers.
I am against the privatization of Ghana Broadcasting Corporation. As an underdeveloped country the government needs a medium of communication to achieve several objectives. Anybody calling for its privatization must have been inebriated. A private organization has its own motives. Government subvention is a must. The organization earns revenue from adverts. Calling for its privatization is counter-intuitive because it is profitable. No media has tentacles that reach every corner of the country better than GBC.
This Napo man is an embarrassment minister who does not have a clue as how to run the ministry, instead of him to concentrate on doing his job he always blaming someone or playing propaganda game.