Despite receiving new guarantees from government representatives regarding overdue funds for the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) initiative, the National Association of Institutional Suppliers (NAIS) intends to move forward with its scheduled demonstration at the Ministry of Education.
The group is seeking the clearance of roughly GH¢50 million for materials provided to public secondary schools dating back to 2023.
This resolve persists even after a Wednesday, June 10 meeting where the Free SHS Secretariat updated providers on the progress of their claims and requested their continued patience.
The association, however, maintains that these verbal commitments are insufficient to cancel the demonstration.
According to an official communication from NAIS on June 3, the decision to protest stems from the extensive delay in compensating vendors who provided school uniforms, house attire, and campus clothing.
Emmanuel Ayivor, the president of NAIS, speaking in an interview on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM noted that despite multiple discussions with authorities, past government pledges have never materialised into actual disbursements.
He stated that while the recent dialogue was appreciated, members are deeply frustrated by the ongoing financial deadlock.
He noted that the demonstration at the ministry will continue as planned until definitive actions are taken to wipe out the debt.
He lamented that these payment failures are crippling their business operations and undermining the survival of enterprises that completed their contractual obligations for the state’s primary education scheme.
He also raised concerns over the pricing provided by government indicating that the Ghc90 for top and down for a student is woefully inadequate.
He notes that when parents were responsible for paying their wards’ fees, suppliers received their payments promptly.
However, since the implementation of the Free SHS policy began, it has caused significant delays in payments to suppliers.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
