A former Deputy Minister of Education has slammed the upcoming National Education Forum as a wasteful and manipulative scheme by President Mahama’s administration.
Rev. John Ntim Fordjour accused the government of using the forum as a smokescreen to dismantle the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy and backtrack on key campaign pledges.
Speaking on Channel One TV on February 17, 2025, he warned that the forum, set to launch on February 18 in Ho and conclude with a validation conference in Accra on February 27-28, is a calculated move to erode the foundations of Free SHS.
He predicted that the event’s outcomes would be rigged to reintroduce a cut-off system—previously barring around 150,000 students from secondary education—and impose fees for elite students, sidelining less privileged ones in top-tier schools.
He also claimed the government would renege on its promise to cover first-year tertiary admission fees.
“The forum is nothing but an avenue to mutilate Free SHS and abandon Mahama’s own promises,” Fordjour charged, calling it an unjustifiable drain on Ghana’s resources.
He pointed to the existing Education Strategic Plan 2018-2030, arguing that it already provides a robust framework, rendering the forum redundant.
“Why waste time and money when the vision should already be clear from the campaign?” he questioned.
With regional discussions planned across the country, the government has touted the forum as a step toward shaping a new education policy.
But Ntim Fordjour dismissed this, insisting Mahama had ample opportunity during his campaign to articulate a coherent plan.
“A president who spent months rallying support and drafting a manifesto doesn’t need a forum to find his vision,” he said.
The former Deputy Minister urged the administration to skip the theatrics and focus on delivering its stated education goals—without tampering with a policy that has transformed access to secondary education for millions.