The Vice President and Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has asserted that the transformative impact of the Free Senior High School (SHS) programme in the North and across Ghana would not have been possible had former President John Mahama remained in office.
Addressing a massive crowd in Jirapa as part of his campaign tour of the Upper West Region, Dr. Bawumia emphasized the significant benefits that the Free SHS initiative has brought to numerous households in the North since its introduction in 2017.
He criticized former President Mahama for opposing the policy, despite its advantages for the region and the nation.
“Former President Mahama said that if he had the money, he wouldn’t use it for free SHS education. He said it was not a priority. But we have brought it, and the people of the North and Ghanaians are benefiting,” Dr. Bawumia declared to loud cheers from the crowd.
Highlighting the increase in enrollment, he continued, “We knew, and I knew, that where we had the poorest people in the North, we needed Free SHS education. We brought Free SHS to the North and Ghana, and our children are attending in their numbers.
The total enrollment for senior high school has increased from 800,000 to 1.4 million in seven years. It tells you that our people were yearning for Free SHS education.”
Dr. Bawumia noted that the five northern regions now boast the highest enrollment rates in senior high school education. “But this is what John Mahama said we should not do. He said if he had the money, he would not do it,” he reiterated.
The Vice President also criticized former President Mahama for the alleged misuse of funds in the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) project. “He set up SADA, and we all saw what happened. He claimed he invested millions of dollars, but we all know what happened. There is no single SADA project to show, and I have challenged him to show us one, and he has not.”
Dr. Bawumia contrasted his record with Mahama’s, highlighting the policies and development projects he has facilitated as Vice President, benefiting both the North and Ghana as a whole.
