Buying 'pasco' for students is normal; it is done in advanced countries - Ntim Fordjour
- A Deputy Minister of Education has defended the government for buying past questions for final year students
- Reverend John Ntim Fordjour stated that the act of buying past questions for students is quite a norm
- He added that in advanced countries like the UK and USA, it is very common
- The Assin South MP said this government is the first to ever do that
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A Deputy Minister of Education, Reverend John Ntim Fordjour, has defended the government for buying past questions for final year students.
In a 3news report, it is indicated that the minister, who is also the Member of Parliament for Assin South said the act of buying past examination questions is a normal thing.
According to him, the practice is even common in other advanced countries and their examinations, like in the SAT and the IGCSE.
Source: UGC
He reiterated that the state decided to buy past questions for the final year students especially those whose parents could not afford the luxury of buying past questions for them.
The deputy minister said the 430-page booklet has all the past questions and examiner’s report from WAEC, which has given the sole right to Kingdom Books in Ghana to reproduce the booklet in Ghana.
Fordjour also stated that aside from the past questions for the students, the government supplied four core textbooks to the final year Senior High School students, a feat he says no government has done before.
Ministers' admittance
The Minister of Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, has revealed that the government spent GH₵68.5 million to buy past questions for final year SHS students.
The decision to purchase the past questions and answers was part of interventions to help the candidates who are beneficiaries of the Free SHS program prepare for the 20/21 WASSCE.
Speaking on the floor of parliament, Dr. Osei Adutwum said while the government spent GH₵33,6m to buy 568,755 Pasco in 2020, a total of 446,954 similar materials were also bought in 2021.
In a report filed by Graphic.com.gh, the minister revealed that the materials were gotten from Messrs Kingdom Books and Stationery at a unit price of GH₵59 in 2020 and GH78 in 2021.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
