Eric Edem Agbana, the member of parliament for Ketu North, has revealed he will petition the Ghana Education Service (GES) to immediately review and recall copies of the Aki-Ola Junior High School Social Studies textbook.
According to Edem Agbana, his petition stems from the Aki-Ola Social Studies textbook for JHS, which highlights the “benefits Ghana has derived from colonisation.”
In a statement dated February 17, 2026, the MP who doubles as a member of Parliament’s select committee on Education described the text as “false and dehumanising content”.
Edem Agbana condemned the notion of colonisation as beneficial to Ghana, emphasising the need for accurate historical narratives in education, especially amidst ongoing reparations efforts.
In a statement issued on X, Edem Agbana wrote, “I have noted images from pages of the Aki-Ola Series Social Studies Textbook for Junior High School Students that contain disturbing content that is not only false but also dehumanising. This content, among other things, sought to outline “Benefits Ghana has derived from colonisation”,
I unequivocally condemn the said content, being its attempt to portray colonisation as of any benefit to Ghanaians and the Ghanaian society at large.
At a time when President John Dramani Mahama is championing continental efforts toward reparations, it is deeply irresponsible to sanitise or glorify a painful chapter of our history. Colonisation was inhuman”.
The MP statement added, “It was a systematic violation of human rights, dignity, and identity. Its effects have left troubling scars on the identities of Africans and Ghanaians. We cannot allow distorted narratives to shape our children’s minds, to whom we owe an uncompromisable duty to ensure they are educated in a way that advances not only the progress of their society but also their own worth and dignity.
“To reconcile the President’s international and regional efforts in ensuring that slavery and colonisation are characterised properly for the negative and inhumane effects they had on the lives of the African, I will formally petition the Ghana Education Service to immediately review and recall these books and ensure that such harmful perspectives are removed from our curriculum.
Our education system must reflect truth, justice, and historical integrity. Not only that, but our education must also sustain a perspective of history that does not deny the past of the Ghanaian, misstate the present, and undermine the hopeful future of the Ghanaian child”.
Some Ghanaians reacting to the development stated, “But colonialism wasn’t mainly about slavery, Honourable. Nkrumah, John Mensah Sarbah, Kwegyir Aggrey etc through colonialism were educated to be very prominent people in the Gold Coast. Let’s not just focus mainly on slavery”.
One more X user added, “The main purpose of colonialism was to benefit Britain, not Ghana, but it had mixed effects. For example, while colonialism exploited Ghana, it also introduced formal education, railways and roads, and modern administrative systems. Teaching this helps students see the full historical picture”.
“You all sometimes take issues too far. Yes, colonisation was bad, but is it the cause of all your problems as a country? No
Is it colonisation that embezzles government funds, and you politicians amassing wealth anyhow? Why do you people go for treatment abroad? Blame games,”, a netizen added.
One more X user added, “Many say everything about Ghana’s colonisation was entirely bad. While it brought exploitation and hardship, not every aspect was negative. Some institutions introduced under British and European rule still shape Ghana today. History is complex, we shouldn’t paint it all black”.
See the post below:
A formal statement on the disturbing contents in the Aki-Ola Series Social Studies Textbook.
— Eric Edem Agbana (@edemagbana) February 17, 2026
A formal petition shall be submitted on Thursday.
Thank You. pic.twitter.com/IqeTMeYKbZ