Leading member of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko has downplayed the significance of the last-minute move by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to woo voters with a promise to absorb full fees of newly admitted students for the 2020/2021 academic year.
In his view, the NDC’s modification of its campaign promise cannot improve the electoral fortunes of the party since it is still led by a presidential candidate who, he believes, has no credibility in the eyes of Ghanaian electorates.
In a post reacting to the opposition party’s announcement of its ‘Fa Ninyinaa’ policy, the cousin of president Akufo-Addo advised the NDC to, instead, change their presidential candidate.
“I hear the NDC have amended their manifesto with a few days to go. Perhaps, they should consider amending their candidate instead!” he said in a social media post.
The opposition party, in a dramatic move, announced that it has accepted for incorporation into the party’s 2020 manifesto which has already been out doored a policy recommend by its Education Policy Group.
The policy dubbed ‘Fa Ninyinaa’ will absorb full school fees of students who will be admitted for the 2020/2021 academic year.
A statement signed by Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, National Chairman of the party, said the policy is a modification of the earlier promise by the party to absorb 50 percent of fees of all tertiary students in the next academic year if it wins the December Elections.
The statement further clarified that the promise to absorb 50 percent of schools of tertiary students through a policy dubbed ‘Kyemupe’ will henceforth apply to only continuing tertiary students in the next academic year.
“The National Democratic Congress (NDC), announces that it has accepted for incorporation in the Peoples’ Manifesto, the recommendation of the Education Policy Group of the party that the next NDC government absorbs the FULL school fees of Ghanaian students who will be admitted to tertiary institutions in the 2020/2021 academic year.
This policy is an enhancement of our commitment in the People’s Manifesto to absorb 50% of the school fees of all tertiary students for the 2020/2021 academic year through the “KYEMUPE” policy, which will now apply to only continuing students in tertiary institutions in the country,” the statement said.
The announcement by the NDC comes in less than a week to the crucial December polls in which the party’s presidential candidate is seeking to make a return to the presidency after he was defeated in the 2016 Elections by president Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Meanwhile, the government has announced a full scholarship Programme for students who will be admitted into tertiary institutions in the next academic year, a move, some say, is aimed at neutralizing the NDC’s latest campaign promise.
