The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), if voted to power, has been urged to submit a thorough plan outlining how it plans to pay for first-year university tuition by the national president of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG).
While acknowledging that the idea would be useful, Prof. Mahamoud Akudugu expressed doubts about its ability to address the infrastructural issues facing tertiary institutions and promote equity.
“We believe that it should be targeted for equity and we would have preferred that this is given as a bursary, scholarship, or grant to the universities to administer as they will be able to know which students need the support based on their history,” he stated.
Prof. Akudugu pointed out that as political parties release their manifestos, UTAG has made the decision to closely monitor laws that directly impact them and has invited flagbearers to participate in in-depth discussions about these issues.
Regarding the NDC flagbearer’s announcement of paying fees for university freshers when voted into office, Prof. Akudugu expressed uncertainty about whether this is the only support package the party has for tertiary institutions.
John Mahama, the flagbearer of the NDC, declared that academic expenses for first-year university students will not be charged.
He claims that this program is a part of the government’s attempt to make it easier for parents to pay for the schooling of their children.
“We will implement a no-fees stress programme to alleviate the financial burden on parents and students in financing tertiary education.
“We will implement a no academic fees policy at the university for level 100 students,” Mahama said during the NDC’s manifesto reading on August 12.
Mr. Mahama further stated that the party will repurpose the Student Loan Trust Fund to allow continuing students to directly use student loans to pay for their tuition, allowing them to concentrate on their studies without worry.
However, the UTAG national president is asking for more clarity in the face of infrastructural challenges.
“In the propositions, I have not heard anything about lecture theatres and lecture recruitments… it is good news that a government wants to do this, but the Association is also concerned about government funding to the universities.
“As of now, government funding to the universities has drastically declined to the extent that it is only salaries that are being paid,” he said.
He also highlighted that universities are expected to cover their own utilities and other bills.
“So if you are proposing a policy of this nature and there is no provision for infrastructure and so on, the students come, and there is no place for them to sit.”
“We want to have a fuller picture so that we can holistically deal with it,” Prof. Akudugu concluded.
