The National Association of Graduates Teachers (NAGRAT) has joined calls for extensive consultation on the proposed Free Senior High School(SHS) Bill, calling for its suspension.
In a statement, NAGRAT said none of the teacher unions have been engaged on the bill despite being a relevant stakeholder.
“We hereby express our disappointment over the lack of any extensive stakeholder consultations and inputs on the impending supposed Free Senior High School (SHS) Bill, especially from the Teacher Unions whose Members are key in implementing the Free Senior High School programme,” the statement read.
NAGRAT has also called on the Parliamentary Select Committee on Education to reject the bill because it lacks stakeholders input.
“We hereby demand that the government, in the interest of mutual respect and acceptance of any law that will affect education, should suspend the presentation of the said bill to Parliament to allow for broad consultation.
“We call on Parliament, especially the Select Committee on Education, that the so-called Bill is without Education Stakeholders’ inputs, particularly the teacher unions, and therefore, should respectively, be rejected,” it added.
The bill, if passed into law, would ensure the Free SHS policy remains binding on successive governments, preventing any future administration from discontinuing the policy.
However, several stakeholders including the Minority in Parliament have raised concerns over the lack of consultation.
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Read the full statement below: