General News of Monday, 30 March 2009

Source: CitiFM

Ghanaian students abroad banned from lectures

Over one hundred Ghanaian students on state scholarships abroad face possible expulsion from their Universities for failure to pay their fees.

Since late last year, the cash-strapped National Scholarship Secretariat has been struggling to pay the fees of students in Benin, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

As a result, most of the affected students have been banned from attending lectures in their various Universities.

Others have had to foot the bills themselves.

A member of the Finance Committee of Parliament, Hon Dominic Nitiwul tells Citi News government must take urgent steps to correct the situation before it is too late.

"The danger is that when these students find other means of paying the money themselves, they will not come back to Ghana again."

He noted that from personal experience, it was very "disheartening" for students abroad to be subjected to such treatment.

He appealed to the GETFund board to make provisions for the stranded students.

Hon Nitiwul says it is a big national embarrassment for Ghanaians on National Scholarship abroad to be facing such a problem.

He says Ghanaians should hold the NDC Government responsible should the affected students be expelled from their schools.