Tension is brewing in the Central Tongu District over the implementation of the Pre-Tertiary Education Act, 2020 (Act 1049) which has led to the takeover of the Adidome Farm Institute by the Ghana TVET Service.
Constituents, particularly youth and some elders of the Mafi Traditional Council, are expressing disappointment in their Member of Parliament for what they describe as poor representation during and after the passage of the law.
According to some residents, Act 1049 was passed in 2020 under what they describe as a hung parliament without adequate consultation and education at the constituency level.
They allege that since the law was passed, the MP has not returned to the constituency to explain the contents of the law, its implications for the Adidome Farm Institute, and the future of agricultural training in the area.
Act 1049 realigned all Technical and Vocational Institutions, including Farm Institutes under 19 Ministries, from their mother Ministries to the Ministry of Education under the Ghana TVET Service.
While government says the move is to streamline TVET and make it more efficient, residents in Adidome fear the move is gradually downgrading the Adidome Farm Institute, which is a historical pre-tertiary agricultural institution that has trained thousands of farmers for the Volta Region.
One elder who spoke to Daily Newsflash on condition of anonymity said:
“We have a Farm Institute that is dear to us. Now we hear it has been taken over by TVET. Our MP sat in Parliament when this law was passed. He did not debate it on the floor, he did not come to inform the chiefs and elders of Mafi Traditional Council, he did not explain anything to us. What kind of representation are we having?”
Other constituents say they never heard their MP contribute to the debate on the floor of Parliament when Act 1049 was being considered, and since its passage, no community durbar has been held to sensitize the people.
They are therefore asking three key questions:
1. What was the position of the Central Tongu MP during the debate and passage of Act 1049?
2. Why has there been no stakeholder engagement with the chiefs, elders, and management of Adidome Farm Institute after the passage?
3. Is the takeover by TVET going to upgrade or downgrade the status and mandate of the Adidome Farm Institute?
Attempts to get a response from the office of the MP were unsuccessful as at press time.
_— Daily Newsflash_
Source:Dela Radio
Tags:
Central Tongu, Adidome Farm Institute, Act 1049, Pre-Tertiary Education Act 2020, Ghana TVET Service, Mafi Traditional Council, Volta Region, TVET, Daily Newsflash, Central Tongu MP, Adidome
