Over 500 science and agricultural students of the Begro Senior High School in the Eastern Region are unable to have science practical lessons as contractors have abandoned renovation work on a Science Resource Centre.
Rehabilitation work which was expected seven years ago, with allocation from the petroleum revenue, was not finished, leaving the facility in a sorry state.
The facility served students of Begro SHS, Nsutam SHS and Osino SHS in the East Akyem District.
Windows, doors, roofing which were removed to pave the way for the rehabilitation has not been fixed.
Equipment and chemicals packed for safe keeping to make way for the rehabilitation to be carried out are going bad.
Dust has taken over equipment due to lack of ventilation, while chemicals have caked and could hardly be used for practical lessons.
Students rarely have practical lessons in an improvised classroom.
They told TV3 the situation is frustrating and affecting academic work.
The chemistry teacher of the school, Samuel Obeng, said results in elective biology, chemistry, and physics have seen a decline compared to the time that the Science Resource Centre was fully functioning.
Documents sighted by TV3 showed the facility was handed over to MESSRS MOFAG COMPANY LTD on February 28, 2011 by the then Education Minister, Alex Tetteh Enyo
The rehabilitation work was to be completed in four months at a total cost of GHC 130,152.96. Of amount, 52,765.89 was expected from the petroleum funds.
New headmaster of Begro SHS, Daniel Mensah, told TV3 that the school was not involved in the implementation of the project hence it could not play any monitoring role by tracing the contractor.
Lab now a classroom
Meanwhile, the school authorities have converted the Science Resource Centre into classrooms in the interim for first year students.
The Fanteakwa District Assembly, TV3 gathered, doesn’t have records that the Resource Centre was supposed to be rehabilited with funds from the petroleum revenue.
District Chief Executive, Charles Oware-Tweneboah said he would follow up the matter on allocations made for the rehabilitation work on the Science Resource Centre.
AESL,supervising government consultants on the rehabilitation said the delay in release of funds may have resulted in the abandonment of the project.
By 3news.com|Ghana