Parliament petitioned to probe GES takeover of Achimota Preparatory School

Parliament has been petitioned to investigate the takeover of Achimota Preparatory School by the Ghana Education Service (GES) and the Ministry of Education.

The petition was presented to the House by MP for Okaikwei North, Theresa Lardi Awuni.

The petition was signed off by the Board, Management, and the Parent-Teacher Association of the school.

The preparatory school was established by a group of expatriates during the colonial era for their children, staff of Achimota School, and the University College of the Gold Coast.

Over time, the expatriates left the management of the school for locals who, from time to time, form a management committee to run the school as a private institution.

The GES took over the institution after a protracted court battle.

Officials of the GES in the Okaikwei North District on April 30, 2021, locked up offices and classrooms of the school in the aftermath of the legal proceedings.

The Service explained that the land and building being occupied by the Achimota Preparatory School formed part of Achimota School Land per the Achimota School Ordinance No. 7 & 1948.

The Speaker has subsequently referred the petition to the Education Committee of the House.

The school’s PTA had previously petitioned the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice on the matter.

In the petition, the PTA accused the Greater Accra Regional Director of Education, Monica Ankrah of trying to bully the school.