Deputy Education Minister, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, has described the National Democratic Congress' (NDC) 'no-fees policy for Level 100 students,' as a reactionary measure aimed at countering the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) established dominance in the education sector.

This comes after the NDC flagbearer John Mahama at the launch of the party’s Youth Manifesto on Monday said first-year tertiary students will not pay academic fees if he wins the election.

Related: Level 100 students won’t pay fees if I’m elected – Mahama

According to him, this is part of a government initiative to lessen the burden on parents financing the cost of their children's education.

But speaking on Joy FM’s Newsfile, Rev. Fordjour noted that the policy is not a well-thought-out policy but rather a desperate attempt to find relevance in an area where the NPP has already excelled.

“The position of the NDC in their Youth Manifesto, particularly the ‘no-fees policy for level 100 students’ is far-fetched. It is to many Ghanaians a knee-jerk approach.

“Obviously, they have realised that every essential aspect of tackling education challenges has been thoroughly taken care of by the NPP and therefore, the need to struggle out and find somewhere they can find space,” he said on Saturday.

The Deputy Minister, who doubles as Member of Parliament for Assin South further said the policy is a tacit acknowledgment of the NPP's superior track record in education.

“The thought of a ‘no-fees policy for level 100 students’ as proposed by the NDC is a strong endorsement of NPP’s position as superior when it comes to education."

“It is an exoneration of the diligent, visionary and consistent position we have maintained since 2008,” he told host Samson Lardy Anyenini.

The Deputy Minister further pointed out that the NPP has consistently prioritised expanding access to education at all levels, a commitment that has been evident in their manifestos and policy implementations over the years.

He highlighted the flagship Free Senior High School (SHS) policy as a key example of the NPP's efforts to dismantle economic barriers to education, ensuring that more Ghanaians have access to secondary education.

“In all our manifestos since 2008, we have made it abundantly clear that we want access to education to be increased at all levels, and all the systemic and economic barriers dismantled.

“Consistently so, since 2017, President Akufo-Addo and Dr Mahamudu Bawumia have demonstrated by investing massively across all sectors, particularly dismantling the economic barriers to education at the secondary level with free SHS policy."