KNUST saga: Inability of students to pay fees borne from hard times – Brogya Genfi

Popular Youth Activist of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Yaw Brogya Genfi, has emphasized that parents are struggling to pay tertiary fees of their wards due to economic hardship under President Akuffo-Addo and Dr Mahamudu Bawumia's government.

According to Yaw Brogya Genfi, nonpayment of tertiary fees is due to the heat of the current unbearable economic hardship in the country and not the fault of students or their hardworking parents or guardians.

In a statement, the Popular NDC activist Yaw Brogya Genfi appealed to the Education Ministry and Management of Tertiary institutions to apply flexibility regarding student fee payment in the current academic year.

“Many Tertiary Institutions are now also preparing to write mid-semester exams and students (or their parents or guardians) are required by educational instructions to pay fees unless they want to skip exams or defer their courses of study as a penalty for defaulting,” Brogya Genfi said.

“Many students rely on student loans to partly or fully pay their school fees but student loan disbursements are currently in arrears from the student loans secretariat and not the fault of the students The prices of goods and services are skyrocketing by the minute in the market. The cost of fuel has doubled within a year. The local currency has weakened in its purchasing power – requiring more of it to buy some goods it used to buy a few months ago”, he added.

He explained “The prolonged strike action by the University Teachers Association of Ghana has negatively affected the spending pattern of parents. Many students rely on student loans to partly or fully pay their school fees. However, student loan disbursements are currently in arrears from the student loans secretariat. This too is not the fault of students. The long-term consequences of the penal actions for delayed payment of fees are dire not only for students and their parents but for the government as well, and therefore should be avoided by all means”.

The NDC Youth activist is therefore appealing to the Minister of Education to, as a matter of humanitarian intervention, engage the Tertiary Institutions to give students and their parents enough room to honour their fee obligations, without affecting their exams timelines.