The ongoing challenges confronting the Computerized School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) must be addressed without political bias, Barbara Ayisi, a member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Policy Coordination Committee’s spokesperson team, has stated.
She stressed that educational matters require objective discussion rather than partisan squabbling, urging stakeholders to focus on resolving the fundamental issues instead of scoring political points.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, the former Member of Parliament expressed concern over the recurring disruptions to the placement process.
“We keep witnessing these challenges every year and it appears it is getting worse with no solution in sight. And when that occurs it descends into the usual politicisation which is unhealthy for us. When talking about education, sometimes it is good you discuss the issues outside politics because definitely I am NPP, I will talk in favour of NPP while the NDC will also do same. But while doing the discussions, we have to do so outside politics,” she said.
The NPP member highlighted that over 55,000 students remain stranded without school allocations, prompting calls for immediate action. She questioned why these operational hurdles persist, particularly since the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) results were released prior to the school selection process.
She maintained that the government has mismanaged both the placement framework and broader secondary education outcomes. Addressing the show’s host, Kwabena Agyapong, she noted that 54,985 BECE candidates were initially informed they had not qualified for secondary school, before the government subsequently directed 53,887 of them to access the online self-placement portal.
“If we don’t find solutions to these challenges in a comprehensive and non-political manner, we will return to them next year,” she warned.
She referenced official data showing 859,828 available vacancies against 623,072 candidates, arguing that overall system capacity is sufficient despite severe congestion in Category A schools.
To resolve the impasse, the NPP is calling on the government to ensure all 54,985 affected candidates receive physical placements and that the final placement list is published transparently. The party is also requesting clear clarification on the pass marks and criteria applied during this year’s exercise.
Furthermore, she urged authorities to utilise the 85 private senior high schools integrated into the Free SHS framework to absorb candidates, adequately fund academic interventions across public high schools, and publish regional breakdowns of available places across Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), apprenticeship, and job training schemes.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana