The Executive Director of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Sulemana Braimah, has urged individuals to come forward and speak out if their applications at the Scholarship Secretariat are denied.
According to him, despite the scholarship secretariat’s mandate specifying that brilliant but needy individuals and workers, qualify for funding, this set of people is still denied. He added that priority is given to those studying abroad who do not return to share their knowledge for the country’s progress.
Speaking in an interview with Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, on Monday, Mr Briamah said that individuals should boldly speak out if they are certain they meet the criteria of the scholarship secretariat but are denied when they apply.
“You have people who have been given scholarships so that they can go and qualify and practice Law in England and Wales. Even just in the past two years, we have been able to track over 140 people who are supposed scholarship beneficiaries who have never returned to this country,” he stated.
“You have people living in the UK for close to 10 to 15 years and they are getting scholarships from Ghana to fund studies there even as they are based there and working there,” he added.
Mr Braimah said that he understands people cannot accuse others of wrongdoing without evidence, however, in cases where applicants have proof of their legibility, they need to open up.
“I think we have gotten to a point where people must be bold, people must be courageous. We have people reach out to us individually to talk about what they have gone through, the challenges they face, how they were habitually and all that. And sometimes I tell these people, why are you not bold enough to come out?”
“Yes, I can understand if you are going to indict somebody without evidence, but where you have evidence, such as bank transfer records, why are you not ready and willing to put those things out?” he quizzed.
This comes after a recent expose by the Fourth Estate, which claimed that scholarships are disproportionately awarded to well-connected affluent individuals in the nation.
Notably, children of the National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), a former Inspector General of Police, a Deputy Director at the NSS, and other individuals allegedly connected to the political elite were listed among the beneficiaries.
Also, the expose revealed that while some people do not get the scholarships and even if they do, struggle to get their stipend from the government others are awarded double scholarships by the secretariat.
Mr Braimah people are concerned that the current leadership of our country are destroying the future of the younger generation, particularly the youth who form the majority.
He underscored that although the public observes these events unfolding, the level of anger and determination to safeguard the country’s future appears insufficient.
“If we are angry and we demonstrate that anger and the President know that we gave him that power and we expect him to exercise that power in our interest, he will begin to act,” he said.
“So yes the law can help sometimes, but it is not for me the absolute solution. The solution lies within us. I think we are not angry enough, we need to begin to act like citizens and demand the right that we are entitled to,” he added.
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