The Students’ Representative Council of the University Of Education, Winneba (UEW) have expressed worry and dissatisfaction at the delay in constituting a new Governing Council for the University, a situation they said had created crisis that elicited fear and apprehension among the over 12,000 students earmarked for graduation.
The SRC also bemoaned the sheer disappointment written on the faces of parents and well-wishers over the status of the 24th Congregation as the ceremony draws closer.
At a press conference addressed by the President of the SRC, Emmanuel Oduro Fosu, he averred that the student body of the University feels agitated by events and uncertainties surrounding the reconstitution and swearing-in of a new Governing Council for UEW and the pending graduation ceremonies slated from July 22 – August 2, 2019.
According to him, the SRC is of the opinion that “this bizarre situation if allowed to happen will make mockery of the pains-taking preparations, time, efforts and resources invested into the July Congregation by both students and staff, and above all the eager anticipation and plans of students to graduate early in order to make them more competitive on the job market and also transition smoothly onto other postgraduate programmes.”
He also stated that some enthusiastic colleagues have started arriving ahead of the pending Congregation starting 22nd July, and hence called on government and the Ministry of Education to wade into the unique and precarious situation UEW finds itself which the Management and the immediate past Governing Council have steered diligently and admirably.
Emmanuel Oduro Fosu maintained that the situation needs no further aggravation by the “seemingly simple” routine administrative process and that President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo Addo, the Minister of Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, the Minister of State In-Charge of Tertiary Education, Prof. Kwesi Yankah, the National Council for Tertiary Education and all other stakeholders to, as a matter of urgency, do the needful by reconstituting and swearing in a new Governing Council for our University.
This, he said will allay their collective fears and set at peace the minds of the over 12,000 students expected to graduate and, with their parents and well-wishers.
The SRC however assured the general student body, prospective graduands with their parents and well-wishes that it will continue to liaise with Management and all other stakeholders to ensure that all the necessary steps are taken to prevent the avoidable from happening.
It would be recalled that the term of the immediate past Governing Council of the UEW came to an end on July 17, 2019. And it has been the expectation of the students that a new Governing Council would be reconstituted and sworn in to steer affairs of the University and to usher the University into the new era of graduating students in July to enable them to compete favourably on the job market and to ensure seamless transition for those who yearn to venture into other postgraduate areas of studies.
Meanwhile, a new Governing Council is yet to be constituted.
The students however claimed they haven’t heard anything from the government through the Ministry of Education, after the expiration of the term of the immediate past Governing Council in that regard.
By PROSPER AGBENYEGA