Following an inquiry into the Registrar of the Scholarship Secretariat’s actions by the Fourth Estate, the Minority in Ghana’s Parliament has demanded the Registrar’s immediate interdiction.

According to the report, scholarships that were meant to be awarded to worthy and academically gifted students who were in need were instead given out based on political affiliations and other inappropriate criteria.

People connected to the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) allegedly received preference when it came to scholarship awards, according to the Fourth Estate’s 2019–2020 investigation.
It is alleged that one NPP official received multiple scholarships totaling £57,210 for postgraduate studies, and that the spouse of the vice president’s special assistant received £17,355 for a programme in the UK that they never attended.

The minority MPs are requesting that Kingsley Agyemeng, the registrar of the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, resign immediately in light of these revelations.

Additionally, they demand that the Office of the Special Prosecutor look into the Secretariat’s operations as soon as possible.

The minority’s statement highlights that testimonies from Ghanaians both locally and abroad have validated these findings.

“The series of investigations by the Fourth Estate have since been corroborated by other patriotic Ghanaians, both home and abroad. Many have cited instances of extortion, bribery and collection of kickbacks allegedly involving the Registrar of the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, Kingsley Agyemang, and other officials.

“Other first-hand chilling accounts of our compatriots who have reached out to the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat for help, reveal wanton corruption and gross abuse of office by these officials of the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia NPP government,” part of the statement read.

The Minority also urged President Akufo-Addo to take prompt action to stop future misuse of the public coffers.

“Widespread reports of multiple scholarships worth several thousands of dollars, sometimes awarded to the same individuals in the same year, reveal the extent of abuse of the taxpayers’ money. Worst of all, it has been reported that these awards are sometimes handed to NPP-aligned persons for two-week training programmes abroad, in return for some kickback.

“In light of the above revelations and others which will be contained in details of the over 900 foreign scholarships awarded between 2019 and 2020, yet to be published by the Fourth Estate, the NDC Minority Caucus in Parliament hereby demands the following urgent actions:

1. The immediate interdiction of the Registrar of the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, Kingsley Agyemang, pending investigations into its operations.

2. The Special Prosecutor must order an immediate forensic audit of all scholarships awarded since January 2017. We call on President Akufo-Addo to act swiftly in this matter in order to protect the public purse from further abuse,” the statement added.