It was a busy morning at the Ghana Education Service (GES) headquarters when Daniel Feyi, the Head of Public Relations, sat down to sign an important statement.
Reports had been pouring in, some schools across the country, especially second-cycle institutions, were collecting various fees from parents under the name of Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) dues. These collections, it turned out, were not authorized.
Recognizing the seriousness of the matter, the GES issued a strong warning to all schools: No school, whether basic or second-cycle, had been granted permission to collect PTA or development levies without official approval.
The directive was clear, before any levy could be imposed, schools must seek approval through the right educational channels. For basic schools, this meant applying through the District Education Oversight Committee (DEOC) via the District Director of Education. For second-cycle schools, the Regional Director of Education was the authority to approach.
But the GES went further. Even if approval was given, the Service emphasized that PTA payments were strictly voluntary. No student, the statement stressed, should ever be denied any service, right, or benefit at school for not paying such levies.
To make the distinction even clearer, the GES instructed that no school head, teacher, or GES staff member should be involved in collecting PTA dues. That responsibility, they reminded everyone, belonged solely to the elected PTA executives, whose fundraising activities were separate from official school duties.
Regional and District Directors received a special task: to keep watch over all schools, ensuring that the directive was followed. Any violation, the statement warned, would be met with swift disciplinary action.
Through this cautionary tale, the GES reaffirmed its commitment to fairness, transparency, and accountability in Ghana’s schools, protecting both parents and students from unauthorized financial demands and maintaining trust in the nation’s educational system.
Source: Apexnewsgh.com
