A former Member of Parliament who was also on the Education Committee of Parliament has called on regulatory bodies in the country to ensure that tertiary institutions in the country operate in accordance with the laws of Ghana.
Former MP Mr. Alex Agyekum, who represented the people of Mphor, stated that if our regulatory bodies fail to regulate the tertiary education sector, Ghana will be plunged into an “academic galamsey.”
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5Fm, he said the Auditor-General’s report exposing that some of our accredited public institutions were tunning courses without accreditation is not only unfortunate but exposes the failure on the part of the regulatory bodies.
He stated that after taking office, the current government initiated steps to establish bodies through the education regulatory act, Act 10 (23) to ensure sanity in the sector.
The National Teaching Council, the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education Training, the National Schools Inspectorate Authority, and the National Council for Curriculum and National Assessment are all established by this act.
These five bodies are in charge of ensuring that schools in the country operate within Ghana’s legal framework, and as part of their responsibilities, they could have prevented the violations that the various tertiary institutions were cited for.
He also wonders why the University Teachers Association and the National Union of Ghanaians have remained silent on these unfortunate issues.
According to him, UTAG is only interested in engaging in politics and not in ensuring that the tertiary institutions where they lecture follow Ghanaian laws.
He claims that student bodies in Ghana are only interested in engaging in lawlessness and not in ensuring that the schools they attend are accredited.
He mentioned that one industry that is thriving today is the proliferation of tertiary schools that are not accredited.
“Today, we’re fighting Aisha Huang and galamsey, but if we’re not careful, we’ll be fighting academic galamsey. We need to address it as soon as possible to avoid what I call academic galamsey.”
My point is that we have a system in place, laws, and regulatory bodies that must crack the whip and ensure that their sector is regulated. As I urge parliament to summon these bodies, I also urge UTAG to become involved in the issues. They are outspoken on political issues but have been silent on this. NUGS is also in charge of student interests, but they are only interested in violent clashes.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
