Apaak Advocates for Stranded Ghanaian Students Abroad

Member of Parliament (MP) for Builsa South Constituency and Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee of Parliament, has described as “heartbreaking”, the plight of Ghanaian students studying abroad on government scholarship said to be stranded, due to authority’s failure to remit them.

According to Dr Clement Abas Apaak, the plight of these students, some of whom are mostly in tears, sorrow, can’t feed themselves, whiles others are facing threats of being prevented from writing their examinations, must receive national attention.

In a statement dated Thursday, May 30, 2024, sent to The Anchor, Dr Apaak said, “the plight of Ghanaian students studying on GOG Scholarships must receive our collective attention as a nation”.

The concern by the lawmaker, follows a recent protest by some Ghanaian students on scholarship in front of Ghana’s Embassy in Morocco, pleading with government to pay their over 10-months old stipends.

In a viral video last week, the students in Morocco, said they were unable to cope with the situation any further.

According to them, life has become very challenging, considering the fact that they have not had their stipends for months, making it very difficult in that country to study.

But the NDC MP, who expressed deep concern about the situation, said the issue is also an embarrassment to Ghana amongst its continental and international peers.

He said, having studied in Norway and Canada himself in the past, he understands and can relate to the challenges these international students are going through, hence would continue to advocate for them in the current situation they find themselves.

“Though the Scholarship Secretariat is housed at the Presidency, and therefore outside the mandate of the Education Committee of Parliament, I’ve made it my business to advocate for our students studying abroad because I can relate to, and understand the challenges of international students first hand, having studied in Norway and Canada, myself,” he stated.

He indicated that, “whilst it’s heartbreaking for parents to watch their wards in such a helpless situation in a foreign land, when state resources are dissipated wantonly by the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government, it is also an embarrassment to Ghana amongst its continental and international peers”.

According to him, Ghanaians must call out the government for wasting the collective resources of Ghanaians on “personal and frivolous pet projects to the detriment of Ghanaian students, as in this situation”.

He said mentioned that, “The plight of our students in Morocco, as narrated by themselves in the video attached, adds to a long and unending list of similar situations reported by students in various countries studying on GOG Scholarships”.

“Our students on GOG Scholarships are mostly in tears, sorrow and trauma, because of threats of being prevented from writing their examinations, thrown out of their places of abode, and their inability to pay for utilities, and to feed themselves; due to delays in remittance by government via the Scholarship Secretariat,” he pointed out.

He said as far as he knows, government has been granted the resources to ensure that all students on GOG Scholarships, both home and abroad, are adequately supported and their stipends timeously remitted.

Therefore, the government, through the Scholarship Secretariat, has no excuse looking on while our sons and daughters suffer humiliation in foreign lands.

Dr Apaak, said as part of my advocacy, he had filed at least two questions on this matter of unreasonable delays by the Scholarship Secretariat to remit Ghanaian students on GOG Scholarships.

He calls on all well-meaning Ghanaians to join him in this advocacy to ensure that the appointing authorities instruct the Scholarship Secretariat to remit the helpless students in Morocco and those facing similar situation in other part of the world.

“Given that the situation in which our students in Morocco find themselves remains unresolved, I ask you to join me in calling on Akufo-Addo and/or Bawumia to instruct the Scholarship Secretariat to immediately remit our helpless students in Morocco. Let’s further call on government to ensure that there are no unreasonable delays in remitting our students on GOG Scholarships in any part of the world,” he pleads.

Source: Anchorghana.com