Former Registrar of the Scholarship Secretariat and MP for Abuakwa South, Dr Kingsley Agyemang, has dismissed allegations that under his tenure the secretariat left a £32-million scholarship debt.

He explained that the issue is a perennial, unresolved systemic burden inherited from previous administrations.

At a press conference on Thursday, December 4, in Accra, Dr Agyemang said the Secretariat’s financial challenges were “legacy liabilities”, not fiscal irresponsibility on his part.

He argued that when the Akufo-Addo administration assumed office in 2017, the first John Mahama administration had already accumulated arrears of GH₵230 million, approximately $57 million, which the then NPP administration cleared to prevent Ghanaian students abroad from being expelled over unpaid fees.

He emphasised that the intervention ensured no student studying overseas was forced out of school, safeguarding both their academic progress and Ghana’s reputation.

His rebuttal follows allegations made by Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Sabah Zita Benson, who revealed that an unpaid debt of about £32 million had been left behind at the Secretariat, a development she said has stranded hundreds of Ghanaian students in the UK.

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In a recent meeting of some affected students and the Commissioner in London, Mrs Benson reportedly questioned why the former registrar was “still walking free” despite the severe hardship the situation had caused.

Mrs Benson allegedly accused the MP of continuing to issue scholarship award letters despite a lack of funds to support them, creating a ballooning debt of £35 million, of which only £3 million has recently been settled.

She also alleged that some students had paid bribes of up to £10,000 in exchange for scholarship award letters, amounts that could have covered their tuition.

She described the situation as “heartbreaking and unacceptable”, noting that UK institutions are demanding immediate payment, leaving the mission under immense pressure.

Mrs Benson also suggested that the former registrar’s conduct appeared calculated, arguing that his actions saddled the new government with an overwhelming debt load while putting Ghana’s international reputation at risk.

In response to the growing storm, Dr Agyemang urged stakeholders to adopt a fair and balanced perspective rooted in institutional memory rather than speculation.

He maintained that the debt crisis is a structural issue that predates his administration and should not be personalised.