Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) has seen massive decrease in student enrollment in recent times for both graduate and undergraduate admissions.
Enrollment of the Institute which was established in 1961 and which had over 10000 student population as at last count in year 2015, keeps increasing every Academic year, until quite recently, there has been a massive reduction in Application and enrollment.
Reliable information gathered has indicated that the Institute which has over the years been the envy of most people, could collapse if swift intervention is not taken.
This development according to information gathered, is due to the fall in the admission level of students into undergraduate departments of the Institute.
It is alleged that the school has recorded the lowest ever post and undergraduate admissions this year all because the school does not have Hostel facilities to contain the number of applicants who have interest in pursuing their educational career at the institute especially at the undergraduate level.
The inability of GMPA to build hostel facilities which will enable its management be able to admit more students, is because of the fact that the institute is having problems with land acquisition.
Speaking to some students of GIMPA, they indicated that they would have loved to be at the Hostel but the Institute has no such facility hence, they are forced to come to school from outside campus.
The students who also admitted to the low admission this year, noted that the situation could have been different if the school has Hostel facilities.
Interestingly, the fallen admissions has become a headache to the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo who attempted forming an investigation team to look into the matter but that had been put on hold.
Meanwhile, the Board Chairman, Nana Kofi Asante Bediatuo, was reported to be in every board meeting but could not rectify the situation but now planning of forming his own committee to investigate the low level of undergraduate applicants and admissions.
The vast decrease in student enrollment is mainly due to an alleged land litigation which the School is currently battling with the Management of KOANS Estate Ltd. a private land development and Estate Company.
The parcels of land, this paper has established, could have been used to build Hostel facilities for students but due to the litigation, the school is unable to utilize the land.
The Land litigation according to the information has also affected the financial status of the nation’s university and it would be appropriate if the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo set up his own committee to save the school form collapse.
GIMPA purchased a thousand acre plot of land from Koans Building Solutions to be paid over a period of six years.
The total cost of the plots of land is Twenty Four Million Ghana Cedis (GHc 24m).
The Rector, Philip Ebow Bondzi-Simpson, and the Council Chairman, Nana Kofi Asante Bediatuo, decided to halt payment starting from March 2018.
Having exhausted all avenues to retrieve the money for the month of March and sensing foul play, Koans Building Solution proceeded to Court to seek a judgement to compel the defaulting party to pay up.
On June 13, 2018, Justice of the High Court, Koforidua, and His Lordship Mac Kogyapwah gave judgment in favour of the developer, compelling GIMPA to pay the March installment and additional One Hundred and Eighty Ghana Cedis representing interest accrued over the period of three months non-payment.
GIMPA has over the years been in debt to KOANS Estates and Construction Limited after it failed to honour their side of a bargain in the purchase of a 1000 acres land, despite express orders from a High Court.
The University however succeeded in overturning the Ruling of the High Court at the Appeals Court.
In the Appeals Court Judgement, the Court directed that KOANS Building Solutions performs its obligation under the 10th January, 2014 Agreement by delivering to GIMPA contiguous land of 1,000 acres free from all encumbrances including but not limited to the clearing of squatters on the land, which investigations have revealed have been dully executed.
Meanwhile, KOANS Estates and Construction Limited has managed to take the matter to the Supreme Court where the University is still pursuing the matter.
But the question people are asking is, at whose expense is GIMPA litigating after paying about half of the money involved in the purchase of the said land to KOANS Estates?
Students of the school are however not comfortable at the loss as to why the Rector would take a decision that will put needless financial burden on the institution.
According to some educationists, GIMPA cannot operate undergraduate courses without integrating Allied Sciences hence the decision to purchase land to build hostel facilities and expand so as to accommodate undergraduates is in the right direction and the University must pursue that.
They said without undergraduate students, the university would collapse in no time if care is not taken.
Background
In the year 2014, the management of GIMPA in response to the oversubscription of their undergraduate programs and the extra burden placed on the current campus, due to huge student population, decided to set up a dedicated campus for undergraduate programs so that the main GIMPA Campus can be used for management level programs.
With the new arrangement, GIMPA is most likely to be one of the biggest institution for undergraduate programs in the country haven carved the niche for itself as the foremost and most credible institution for public administration and management programs over the years.
All efforts by the media to get the Rector of GIMPA and Mr. Rami Baiti, the Corporate Affairs Director of the Institute to speak to the issue have proven futile.
By:Prosper Agbenyega