Prof Ransford Edward Gyampo
Some Ghanaians are deeply worried about the goings on in the conduct of public affairs. Issues and challenges that require unity of purpose to resolve rather divide us along partisan lines. There is hardly any occasion when the opposition people will praise the government when it is due and criticise the authorities when they must do so.
Government officials are humans and not angels and therefore cannot be perfect in the discharge of their duties, but they do not deliberately impose hardships on the citizens. If something goes wrong then it must be the result of poor policy implementation and not for want of trying.
Nonetheless to John Mahama and his NDC and their collaborators in academia, media and civil society will shoot down any policies that have the potential to uplift the people from their present limitations.
They are possessed by the power of impossibilities. Who in his right senses will oppose free SHS that is meant to give equal opportunities to our children regardless of their geographical locations and economic power to have access to continuing education beyond the basic level?
Education is the leveller as it offers opportunity to all to improve their well-being and those of their families provided there are no road blocks in the way of children like the Mahama era.
Even when the NPP government is seeking ways to improve the quality of teaching and learning by introducing the teacher licensure examinations, the NDC kicked against it.
No patriotic citizen will kick against a policy that will enhance the skills of our teachers in whose hands the destiny of our future leaders are entrusted.
Ironically, the teacher unions also opposed the policy, making us wonder whether the unions – GNAT, NAGRAT and CCT – mean well for teachers or just interested in their dues. But for their selfish interest, these unions should be the first to grab the licensure exam to improve the quality of teaching in our schools.
We know Ghanaians are now more discerning and are no longer suffering from the condition of forgetfulness as Mahama believes, but remember what the former President said in 2020 while on the campaign trail.
Hoping to cash in on the agitation of the teachers over the policy, he promised that if elected he will scrap the licensure exams.
Today, after the latest exams has exposed the poor quality of teachers and after all the policy is good, the NDC has started revising its notes. Clement Apaak is reported to have said a future NDC government will review the policy, if only he is not restating the review as an euphemism for cancellation as suggested by Mahama in 2020.
We must also draw the attention of one Ghanaian who has become a pain in the neck. A so-called lecturer, the thinking of Prof. Ransford Gyampo has become so jaundiced that his dislike for the NPP is no longer a conjecture. He was on a media platform claiming that the NPP government orchestrated the mass failure to satisfy the IMF conditionalities. What bunkum. How can an otherwise knowledgeable personality be exposing his party colours in such an ignominious manner?
Now, as a result of that mass failure of those who took part in the licensure exams, the naysayers including Mahama have started revising their notes and for once acknowledge the vision of President Akufo-Addo for teachers in particular and all the people in general.
Our appeal to all well-meaning Ghanaians especially the think tanks is that they should scrutinise government policies devoid of partisan lenses.
That way we can make progress with the development process and thus we expose those who plot the downfall of the country with their propaganda and misinformation.
In conclusion, we urge the government to continue with its good policies and in the specific case of the mass failure sit down with all the stakeholders to put in place the strategies to improve teacher education and the quality of the teachers in the classrooms.
The outcome of the licensure exams is unacceptable and never again should it happen, so that those who wrote those scripts that appeared on social media do not be the laughing stocks of their students.