The Member of Parliament for the Lawra Constituency, Bede A. Ziedeng, has pushed back against public misconceptions surrounding his educational support initiative, stressing that the scheme is not a scholarship programme but limited financial assistance for needy students.
In a statement addressing concerns, Mr. Ziedeng said his intervention, first outlined during his 2015 campaign, was designed to “support the payment of fees of brilliant but needy students” in tertiary institutions, particularly teacher and nursing training colleges.
“I have never said anywhere, anytime that I will award scholarships to students or even underwrite their total fees,” he clarified.
The MP explained that the support is funded from his share of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), not a dedicated education fund as widely assumed.
“There is nothing like MP’s Common Fund for Education. It is a complete misunderstanding,” he stated, adding that MPs are allocated a portion of the DACF to address various development needs at their discretion.
According to him, he chose to prioritise education by channeling part of the fund into fee support rather than infrastructure projects such as school buildings, clinics, or roads.
“I decided to apply part of my Common Fund to support students pay part of their fees,” he said.
Mr. Ziedeng noted that the initiative targets students in teacher training colleges, nursing training colleges, technical universities, and undergraduate programmes, excluding most postgraduate applicants due to limited resources.
He revealed that more than 600 students across the constituency have so far benefited from the intervention.
“No community can complain that they have not benefitted,” he said, describing the approach as “social democracy in practice.”
The MP also disclosed that he has, in some cases, supported students beyond the Common Fund using his personal resources and facilitated access to GETFund scholarships for others.
Responding to criticism over the quantum of support, Mr. Ziedeng suggested that those seeking more comprehensive funding should turn to government scholarship schemes.
He maintained that his initiative is a personal contribution to addressing educational challenges in the constituency and signaled openness to improving the system.
“If I continue to be MP, I could consider suggestions to improve the current system,” he added.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
