Some concerned parents of wards of the Kumasi Senior High Technical School (KSTS) have called for a probe of the management of the school, citing extortion and exploitation of students.
The complainants pointed to connivance of management with the leadership of the local Parent Teacher Association (PTA) to levy students without approval.
Among the allegations is the collection of unapproved charges of GHc250 WASSCE Support fund from final year students.
It is suspected that invigilators are influenced by this fund and thus encourage exam malpractices among students who are thus encouraged not to learn in negation to the role of PTAs.
Referring to the role of the Regional branches and School-based (Unit) PTAs to promote the general welfare of students, the aggrieved parents said the institution of the said WASSCE Support Fund basically goes to undermine PTA’s role to improve teaching and learning and that their role should not affect teaching and learning, but rather advance the education of students.
According to the parents, students who fail to pay the GHc250 WASSCE Support Fund at the time of leaving school are not cleared by the management of the school.
Other allegations are supply of School uniforms at GHc100 and GHc130 for male and female students respectively and GHc50 for cutlasses per the over 1,500 first year students.
It is also alleged that fresh students are asked to provide a rim of A4 sheets as part of prospectus, while teachers on internship at the school pay GHc30 for their letters, among other financial malfeasance.
It is gathered that all these charges and payments do not reflect in the school’s account books, an indication that these monies go to line and enrich the pockets of some individual staff members and that, in the face of these unapproved charges there is overcrowding in the classrooms.
The parents also complained about lack of furniture at the dining halls and classrooms.
Reacting to the allegations, the headmaster, Mr. Andrews Boateng said the PTA introduced the WASSCE Support fund to support the printing of Mock Exams and other Teaching and Learning materials.
According to him, the management of the school was not involved in such activities because the PTA is an autonomous entity.
He emphasised that the tenure of office of the local PTA had elapsed and was awaiting a replacement through elections and therefore not active currently.
Headmaster Boateng also said most of the things, including cutlasses and A4 sheets among others that the schools collected were contained in the approved Prospectus for 2023 and that they were stopped at a point when the Ghana Education Service ordered such collections to stop.
He said those packets of A4 collected and others items collected before the banning order are still being kept in a store for use by Administration.
The headmaster also said since there was no area on campus to be cleared, management decided to procure waste containers with the GHc50 collected for cutlasses from the over 1,500 first year students.
Mr. Boateng claimed he had answered a similar query by the Regional Directorate of Education since March 2023 and that he has been cleared of the allegations.
When reached via phone, Rev. Dr. Mark Kwasi Okyere-Kesse, the immediate past chairman of the KSTS PTA claimed he knew about the WASSCE Support fund but declined to comment unless in the presence of the headmaster of the school.
He also debunked the claim that he is an out-gone PTA chairman and explained that no known executives have taken over from his administration.
