ARCHIMEDES WRITES
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology has
its mission statement which depicts that, the University provide environment
for teaching, research and entrepreneurship training in science and technology
for the industrial and socio-economic development of Ghana, Africa and other
nations. The mission statement of an organization is a short statement that
depicts organizational purpose, identifying the goal of its operations: what
kind of products or services it provides. Providing an environment for learning
when students’ voice is considered as a last priority is awkward and should be
condemned at the highest level.
"Biribi ankoka papa a, anka papa annye
kyerede" which laterally means, "if something had not touched the
papa (dried palm frond), it wouldn't have made a sound”. We are in a
dispensation where university authorities do not recognize dialogue (round
table discussion) with the student leaders to curb issues which were popping
up.
A university where hall executives (UNITY AND UNIVERSITY HALL JCR) will
be punished just because they chose legal means to approach the issue of male
halls conversion when the school authorities turned deaf ears to the grievances
of student leaders in these two halls. The JCR have been denied access to their
hall (jurisdiction) and have gone on to appoint first years who have not even
spent two months in these halls, leaving the leaders of these halls who have
been constitutionally elected fugitives of their own land and exiled.
We are in a school where about 70% of its population
leave off campus with highly deficient security. A school where its academic
year hostel price costs about Ghc 3000.00, which can pay for regular school
fees for about three years, yet off campus life is horrible. Roads leading to
our hostels get flooded anytime it rains. I was nearly carried away by the
flood around the bridge behind the 'JERICHO WALL' adjacent Nana Adoma Hostel.
This issue is visibly evidential to the sight of most students who use or visit
that road to their various hostels.
Find images of the state of off campus hostel when it
rains;
Images by Amo-Agyei Gideon (ARCHIMEDES): The Author
A school where a road (on campus) can be reconstructed
for about four times a semester in the name of maintenance which may move with
huge budgets. A university where securities have power over students
excessively. What gives me headache and anger is that, a school which has
unrecognized cells, built about 10 years down the lane, the securities arrest
students in that cells overnight.
A school where security administer instant justice to
students with or without provocation, yet administration ushers no condemnation
to the security men when SRC approaches them. A school where student leaders
are asked to celebrate (all six traditional halls weeks’ celebrations squeezed)
their hall week within a week. Leaders lamented on this, but they turned deaf
ears to them.
A school where students are afraid to go in for
remarking. A school which claims they transport students ‘freely’, but majority
of the student body do not benefit just because they are not residing on
campus.
Students have been complaining continuously for shuttles to come off
campus to convey them since they have paid for it, but they have turned deaf
ears to them.
A school which has its lastly built hall that had its
50th anniversary celebrated this academic year, yet the leaders have not
thought of building a new HALL to solve this accommodation crisis on the land
of KNUST. Yet, we have acres of land which is idle. Hmmm, only God knows what
is preventing them.
A school (university) that can issue a letter
claiming to suspend any student who will be found in a lady’s room after 10pm
and a member of hall ‘A’ cannot enter hall ‘B’ at the said time, owing denial to
an Access Control. The dangerous part of it is that, a hall like UNITY HALL,
having one entrance, allowing about 2000 students to pass through. If accident
like fire outbreaks pop up, what becomes the fate of students?
All these issues have escalated the anger of students
to the extent that they could not bear it anymore. All avenues failed. All
avenues of dialogue and such like failed and the issues were accumulated. The
student leaders met with the administration, but as I said the authorities
turned deaf ears to our leaders. Some of them chose legal means, but the
leaders (UNITY AND UNIVERSITY HALL JCR) were punished. So, what they
needed was obviously demonstration; the last and only available resort.
The SRC did that by releasing a message telling students
to boycott lectures since a student, an innocent student for that matter, was
beaten by the security and nothing was done to remedy the situation. What got
me angry like a roaring lion was that, the boy was caught unarmed, and beaten
in a criminalized manner. So, do you have to administer beating to an unarmed
student to the point where he is weak before you can send him to ‘the
unrecognized cells’, which I am against totally? The SRC sent the release on
Sunday on the 'Peaceful Demonstration’, as it was purported to be. The entire
student populace was to boycott class, since the authorities do not recognize dialogue
and legal way of solving issues.
That very same day, the university gave a response by
a message from the vice chancellor through the Dean of Students (DOS) reading,
"The attention of the VC has been drawn to a boycott of lectures by
students on Monday 22nd, October 2018. You are reminded that, attendance at
lectures is compulsory and the decision to attend lectures or not remains an
individual affair. Lecturers will be at lectures as usual and you are entreated
to disregard any contrary information." This message manifested
to me that, the authorities do not respect the views of students. As it
was rightly said by William Lyon Mackenzie King, "where there is little or
no public opinion, there is likely to be bad government which sooner or later
becomes autocratic government".
I call this autocratic leadership in the sense that,
the authorities were not willing to hear the cry of students, students will use
legal means and then you punish them. It does not end there, student leaders
will call 'Peaceful Demonstration' and you will send a message debunking the
decision by the student leaders. You give the SRC no chance to get their issues
resolved. Most students went to class that day because they were afraid and was
a complete threat from the side of the administration. The message means to the
best of my knowledge that, students who will not attend lectures may be
sanctioned or dismissed. I was totally aggrieved and bereaved when I saw the
message. No letter, message or whatsoever came from the administration
condemning the act of the security men, but when the University Relation
Officer said after the incident was that, students who were arrested on the
11th of October 2018 should be sanctioned. The administration did not check up
on the state of the student who was hospitalized from the unprofessionally
immature act of their pampered 'Adarkwa Police'
See Image of KNUST Security beating Student;
Image by Successafrica.info
During the peaceful demonstration, as it was purported
to be by the SRC, the Police met students, fired gun shots in the air and that
escalated the alleged vandalism since the students saw it as a form of
intimidation. People were condemning the act of students to the point that they
claimed students who did the act should be punished. With the best of my
knowledge, if this demonstration had not been carried out, our voices would not
have been heard. Students were tired of this whole autocratic leadership and I
am saying it emphatically that, until Prof. Obiri Danso goes, students will not
be happy and not rest as well.
I am sorry to say that, I am disappointed in the
University Teachers Association of Ghana, KNUST branch with their stand on what
has happened from day one. My question here is simple, where were the
UTAG when their own students were beaten like armed robbers who have
stolen from a super market and mob attacked? Here come the UTAG-KNUST
executives releasing a letter lamenting on the fact that, they are not
happy about the dissolution of the old university council. They said on Monday
that, they saw demonstration by students that led to destruction of properties
and none of the students has been sanctioned over the actions, but not a letter
or a message or whatsoever to condemn the act of the unprofessional securities.
I call this hypocrisy on the side of the UTAG-KNUST branch.
I will conclude by thanking the SRC President, Mr.
Kelvin Sah, his executives and the SRC Parliamentary Council for taking this
bold decision. Mr. Kelvin Sah, have this in your mind that, students would not forgive
you if you betray them. Don’t lose your integrity since students have you at
heart and ready to support you for this bold decision taken. I saw a press
release or whatsoever by the SRC pleading the government to bring back the
dissolved council without any consultation with the students, when it came, we
the students thought it was one of the false messages that has been circulating
around until the SRC made it clear to students how true the above message that
was sent. As I have indicated earlier where were UTAG and TEWU when students
were being brutalized by those ‘Adarkwah Police’. Until the following issues
are done the students will not rest and the SRC should bare this in mind;
- The Vice
Chancellor should not be the Vice Chancellor of this noble institution no
more since we need to cut through the red tape and bring leadership who
are willing to hear students’ grievances and take them as their utmost
priority.
- The SRC
should lobby in for the Interim council to return Unity Hall, University
Hall and Africa Hall to their normal state for sanity to be restored,
since it is for this reason this brutality-demonstration triggered.
- The SRC
should also lobby for the building of a hall (s), expedited. I say
emphatically, a hall not a hostel, for the betterment of the students
since the existing halls cannot accommodate first year students not to
talk of continuing students for that matter, causing about more than 70%
of students to leave off campus (with less security).
- Students should get a public forum to pour out their grievances despite the fact that we have SRC but it seems they want to fail us.
- Last but not
the least, prices of hostels are outrageous and should be reduced to allow
those who are less privileged like myself to have access to hostels with
less costs and better services from the hostels’ management as well.
Richard Amoh, senior, I greet you. I appreciate your
thriving struggling hustle to impact lives with advocacy. I credit your support
of my writing pieces.
Amo-Agyei Gideon (ARCHIMEDES): The Author
