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Former President Mahama urges govt to withdraw Public Universities Bill …But govt disagrees
Former President John Dramani Mahama has called on the government to withdraw the Public University Bill from parliament because it will colonise the tertiary institutions and stifle their academic freedom.
“Should government proceed and pass the Bill into an Act of Parliament, I will not hesitate to initiate steps for its immediate repeal, as a matter of priority, if God willing I assume office as President in January 2021,” he said.
In a statement issued in Accra yesterday, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) said: “In its current form, it is unclear what problems or challenges in higher education the bill seeks to resolve.
“What is certain howeverthat, the bill is seeking to colonise public universities in the country, undermine academic freedom, stifle scholarly initiative, and subject research and researchers to needless and unproductive government control.”
The bill, seeks to harmonise the finances, administration and governance structure of public universities with reasons for its drafting including that universities continue to veer off their core mandate and are misappropriating their resources.
The Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences, University Teachers, some former vice-chancellors, individual academics in the universities among many other stakeholders, have kicked against it.
“The bill as it stands does not only risk undermining academic innovation and ingenuity; it will also jettison decades of scholarly excellence and adversely affect Ghana’s position as the preferred destination for international scholarly collaboration,” he said and asked the government to listen to the stakeholders.
In his view, instead of the bill, the universities need partnership that fosters academic freedom, enhances their efficiency and also invests in research and development.
He cited the COVID-19 rapid test kit innovation from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and their partner INCAS Diagnostics Company as one of such outcome that was begging for support.
“Our academics and students need support to focus on their core mandates of creating and sharing knowledge, not a Public Universities Bill that seeks to control and undermine the independence of our intellectuals and other researchers in state-owned universities,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education says the Public University Bill will not stifle academic freedom and undermine research and innovation when passed into law, as asserted by former President Mahama.
A rebuttal from the ministry issued by Rodney Nkrumah-Boateng, the press secretary to the sector minister, Dr Matthew Opoku-Prempeh said the bill had received the needed stakeholder inputs to make it robust.
“The ministry would like to put on record that it has extensively engaged shareholders on this matter, having invited, and received, memorandum from the various public universities and other stakeholders.”
“The ministry assures the general public that it is committed to the engagement process with the relevant stakeholders and is confident that eventually, the bill will receive the necessary approvals to enable it pass into law and help reform the tertiary landscape to the ultimate benefit of the nation,” it said.
According to the statement, the comments by former President Mahama “smacks of desperation” and that Ghanaians were expecting clear innovative policy alterative and not promises of reviews and abolitions of existing ones.
“Ex-President Mahama is entitled to speak on any matter but must first be educated and informed. It is wholly unacceptable for a person of his statute to pander to partisan politicking on such an important issue without ascertaining the facts simply because it is an election year,” it said.
Questioning if the Technical University Act passed by the Mahama-led administration, stifled academic freedom, the ministry said this government had done more to promote research.
It said this government had, in addition to the restoration of the Book and Research Allowance abolished by the NDC government, approved 200 per cent increase in research allowance from GH₵500 introduced by former President Kufour to GH₵1,500.
It said it had also laid before parliament, the Ghana Research Fund Bill to establish a fund to provide for funds and to support national research in tertiary and research institutions.
Source: Ghanaian Times
Troubled and anxious citizens in Damongo of the Savannah Region have expressed concerns about the number of young people, believed to be under the age of 18, involved in ‘shisha’ smoking in pubs and drinking spots within the township.
Eyewitnesses say the minors were seen patronising nightlife venues, where Shisha smoking happen in the open.
The situation has sparked renewed public concern over the enforcement of child protection laws and regulations governing the operations of entertainment centres in the municipality and country as a whole.
An eyewitness, who spoke to The Spectator on conditions of anonymity for security reasons, noted that the situation was becoming increasingly common.
“This is not a one-off incident. It is becoming very common, but residents like us cannot openly report or speak about it because our lives will be at risk,” he said.
Under Ghanaian law, minors were prohibited from patronising Shisha.
Public health experts have consistently warned that shisha use exposes users to harmful substances that can negatively affect brain development, respiratory health, and overall well-being, particularly among young people.
The residents believe the alleged incidents point to broader challenges relating to youth supervision, substance abuse, and weak enforcement of existing regulations and have called on municipal authorities, security agencies, and regulatory bodies to intensify monitoring of pubs and entertainment centres to ensure compliance with the law.
In an effort to address the menace, Mr Salisu Be-Awurbi, the Savannah Regional Minister, has led public education campaigns, engaged security agencies, and supported enforcement actions to address the rising use of illicit substances in the region.
Wura Kelly Seidu Boresah I, the Chief of Damongo, has also called on all stakeholders including parents, community leaders, institutions, and young people to actively support efforts to curb drug abuse, warning that the rising consumption of hard drugs poses a serious health threat to the future of the youth in the Savannah Region.
He also cautioned individuals involved in the sale and distribution of illicit drugs to immediately desist from the practice, stressing that offenders will face arrest and prosecution in accordance with the law.
From Geoffrey Buta, Damongo, Savannah Region
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Dr Theresa Baffour, an advocate for ending violence and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SAHM SAHW Foundation, has said that society plays a critical and pivotal role in breaking the cycle of domestic violence.
According to her, domestic violence is a major contributor of making women, who are mostly the victims, mentally derailed and unable to engage in economic activities.
She said this when the foundation called on the Ga Mantse, Nii Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, to solicit support for the initiative by the “Strong and Healthy Minds, Strong and Healthy Women” (SAHM SAHW) to combat domestic violence within the Ga State.
The visit was occasioned by the fact that domestic violence cases have become quite prevalent in the Ga communities and is retarding growth.
According to her, the canker was an impediment to national development because the victims were usually tortured and would have to go through series of therapies to return to the right state of mind.
Dr Baffour mentioned that Gender-Based Violence (GBV) places a mental toll on women, and was, therefore, important to break the cycle through comprehensive mental health support, crisis intervention and empowerment programmes in communities with high rates of GBV.
This intervention, she underscored, would help in empowering the denigrated victim of domestic violence to soundly heal, build and thrive.
Dr Baffour added that the initiative would provide holistic, trauma-informed mental health care and advocacy for young women affected by domestic violence.
According to her, the above statement would create safe spaces for healing and equipping them with entrepreneurial skills for renewed hope and empowered life.
The Ga Mantse pledged his support for the laudable initiative to combat domestic violence and also acknowledged the need to address it in the Ga State.
Further endorsement came from Justice Julia Naa-Yarley Adjei Amoah, Chief of Staff at the Office of the Ga Mantse, as she commended the team of SAHM SAHW Foundation for taking a bold step to end the canker in the Greater Accra.
She added that it was a step in the right direction to save vulnerable women from torture, stress and emotional abuse.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah
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