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“Carefully recruit Technical University teachers to achieve vision of CBT”
The Deputy Minister in-charge of Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Mrs Gifty Twum-Ampofo has called for a careful recruitment and training of technical university teachers to take up the vision of Competency-Based Training (CBT).
She said the kind of qualifications required for one to qualify for teaching in the technical universities must be more than obtaining a second university degree at the PhD level and added that such groups of teachers must appreciate that they were under obligation to produce task-oriented graduates.
“It is not enough engaging the right kind of staff but such staff must undertake periodic re-orientation in the face of the fast-changing technological environment,” she stated.
Mrs Gifty Twum-Ampofo was speaking in Koforidua at the 20th graduation ceremony of the Koforidua Technical University on the theme: Embracing New Technologies and Creative Thinking to Drive Positive Change.”
2, 398 graduated during the ceremony and were awarded with degrees and diplomas in various disciplines.
Mrs Twum-Ampofo stated that currently, one must obtain a minimum of a Master’s degree to become a lecturer in a technical university, adding that all they needed to do was to register with any university to obtain that qualification.
“The question is, have the universities been doing anything different to be able to turn out teachers with the requisite hands-on, task-oriented qualification that the Technical Universities so need to train their students?” she asked.
She stated that if the present crop of Technical University teachers were trained the way it was being done, “it is not likely that the achievable targets of CBT would be realized.
Mr Twum-Ampofo explained that there was a need for a thorough re-orientation of all technical university lecturers for practical, task-oriented and re-training to be able to fulfil the objectives of the CBT concepts.
She said the development of the TVET and technological education at the tertiary level may be elusive if not backed with collaborative efforts of the training institutions, technical universities and industry.
That, she said required the integration of knowledge and professional skills requirement in the curricula of technical universities, and technical vocational institutions.
“Practical attachment and exposure, and internship schemes are among the best ways in which TVET education can prepare graduates for the world of work and life,” she said.
She congratulated the graduates and hoped that their training would be an opening of a brighter future for them and their families.
The Chairman of the Governing Council of the KTU, Professor Samuel Apori said the government has made a massive investment in human, material and monetary resources for TVET to bridge the gap between academia and TVET.
He said the government’s effort was helping to confront equality among various persons either academic or vocational and technical programmes at secondary and technical institutions, to bring transformation in the livelihood of the Ghanaian populace, and hoped that management and other stakeholders in the designated technical universities, secondary schools would not defeat government’s laudable technical and vocational training.
For his part, the New Vice Chancellor of the Koforidua Technical University (KTU), Professor John Owusu stated that the University still faced infrastructural challenges and appealed to the government for a special GetFund allocation to younger technical universities to leapfrog their development and enable them to increase access to more prospective students in the region.
He also appealed to the municipal assemblies in the New Juaben Municipality to provide resources to help in the provision of infrastructure and academic facilities for the university.
From Ama Tekyiwaa Ampadu Agyeman, Koforidua
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Focus on more pressing issues like Galamsey, not hate speech – Ellen Ama Daaku to Mahama
An aide to former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia,Ellen Ama Daaku has advised President John Dramani Mahama to shift his attention from social media hate speech to more urgent national issues such as illegal mining.
Speaking in an interview, she noted that the President’s recent comments about tracking the IP addresses of people who spread hate speech were unnecessary.
According to her, President Mahama must first define what he considers to be hate speech before seeking to punish people for it.
Ms. Daaku argued that the President himself had benefitted from hate speech and social media attacks in the past when he was in opposition.
She said even during his time in government, he described his opponents and their tribesmen in unpalatable terms, which later drew complaints from former President Nana Akufo-Addo to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference.
She stressed that harsh criticism of leaders on social media should not automatically be considered hate speech, adding that former leaders, including former President Nana Akufo-Addo had all been subjected to it.
“He is only feeling what Nana Akufo-Addo went through for eight years,” she remarked.
While acknowledging the need to regulate misconduct online, Ms. Daaku insisted that going after social media activists should not be a priority.
She noted that many political activists, including herself, had been insulted and attacked online but never called for arrests.
She concluded that President Mahama should focus his energy on solving pressing problems such as galamsey and the economy instead of concentrating on critics on social media.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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Prof Alidu Seidu files nomination for Tamale Central seat
The newly elected parliamentary candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for Tamale Central, Prof Alidu Seidu, has submitted his nomination forms to the Electoral Commission.
As of 10:00 a.m. today, he was the only person who had filed to contest the seat.
Nomination of candidates will close at the end of the day.
Associate Professor and Head of the Political Science Department at the University of Ghana Legon, Prof. Alidu Seidu won the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary primaries in the Tamale Central constituency with a landslide victory.
The elections, supervised by the party’s Elections and IT Directorate in the Northern Region, saw Prof. Seidu poll 840 votes out of the total valid ballots cast.
His closest contender, Lawyer Hanan Gundadow Abdul-Rahaman, secured 536 votes.
The other aspirants could not make significant gains, with Dr. Seidu Fiter obtaining 44 votes, Aliu Abdul-Hamid 23 votes, and the rest recording fewer than 10 votes each.
In all, 1,500 ballots were cast, with 6 ballots rejected and 7 spoilt ballots recorded.
The results were signed and declared by Dr. Arnold Mashud Abukari, NDC Northern Regional Director of Elections and IT.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) held parliamentary primaries in Tamale Central to choose a candidate for the upcoming by-election following the death of the sitting Member of Parliament, Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed. Dr. Mohammed, who also served as Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, tragically died in a military helicopter crash in the Adansi Akrofuom District on August 6, 2025, alongside seven others.
His passing left the Tamale Central seat vacant, as required by Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
The Electoral Commission has scheduled the by-election for September 30, 2025. While the NDC moved quickly to open nominations and vet aspirants, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) announced it would not contest the seat, citing the need to respect the somber circumstances and promote national unity.
By: Jacob Aggrey
