Head of the Public Relations Unit at the Ghana Education Service (GES), Daniel Fenyi, says the Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has instituted strict measures to eliminate the unlawful placement of students commonly referred to as “protocol” into their preferred schools.
According to him, both the Ministry of Education and the GES have consistently worked to ensure that the school placement process is based purely on merit and not because of who their parents are.
“We have always wanted the placement process to be largely merit-based. We wanted to reduce the perception and rumours that a student with aggregate 40 could gain admission simply because of who their parents are,” he stated on Onua FM’s Yen Nsempa morning show on Tuesday, October 28, 2025.
Fenyi explained that this practice was one of the major weaknesses observed in previous administrations, and the current leadership was determined not to repeat it.
“Our goal was to make the process as fair and transparent as possible. Those who may have attempted to use ‘protocol’ found it extremely difficult this time and from where I sit, most of them did not succeed,” he added.
“Encouraging such practices is unfair to students who have genuinely worked hard and performed well.”
He further disclosed that the Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu, took deliberate steps to prevent undue interference in the placement system.
“The first step the Minister took was to remove himself entirely from the process. Unfortunately, because he’s a politician, many Ghanaians did not believe him when he said he wouldn’t entertain protocols. But those of us close to the process can confirm that he truly had no access,” Fenyi revealed.
He added that even the Director-General of the GES had no direct involvement in the process.
“Almost everyone disconnected themselves, which is why you’ll notice that in all the controversies surrounding placement this year, neither the Minister’s nor the Director-General’s name has been implicated,” he emphasized.
Responding to reports that some individuals are demanding money from parents in exchange for school placements, Mr. Fenyi confirmed that his office is aware of such schemes.
As they’ve “received such information and have urged parents to report these perpetrators directly to our office, but unfortunately, most parents withhold the necessary details, which makes it difficult for us to take legal action,” he explained.
