Ms Gifty Tawiah, the Headmistress of Asikam Presbyterian Primary School in the Abuakwa South Municipality of the Eastern Region, has urged parents to pay their Parent Teacher Association (PTA) levies to help protect and maintain the school’s property.
“Out of these levies, we pay security personnel, electricity bills, servicing of five donated computers, minor repairs of school property and others,” she said.
Ms Tawiah was speaking at a ceremony to commission a refurbished 20-seater Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Laboratory by the Van Moorhouse Foundation (VMF), in collaboration with the Swiss Embassy in Ghana, at Asikam.
She said most parents refused to pay the PTA levies due to the ‘Free Education' notion, with the idea that that was the government's responsibility, which created challenges in running the school, in terms of maintenance and other basic needs.
She commended the VMF for the timely intervention in refurbishing the ICT Lab, providing 116 dual desks and stationery, and painting the school after it lost most of its property due to the COVID-19 break.
Mr Daniel Hienno, the Abuakwa South Municipal Director of Education, said the PTA levies were not compulsory, however, it was a way by which parents supported the government's efforts for quality education for all.
He appealed to chiefs and community leaders to be interested in the education of the children by providing the needed support and encouragement to the pupils and teachers to give their best.
The Van Moorhouse Foundation is a Non-Governmental Organisation aimed at enhancing people's well-being by providing daily necessities to the vulnerable.