The President (Middle) flanked by the newly sworn in executive delivering his speech
The Graduate Students
Association of Ghana (GRASAG) has called for the immediate withdrawal of the
Public Universities Bill which has been drafted by the government, pending
parliamentary consideration and approval.
According to the president of
GRASAG, Samuel Sagoe, the association “has strong reservations
against the bill and calls for an outright withdrawal of the bill from our
public discourse.”
“It is our considered view
that, laws are essentially made to solve societal problem or cure a mischief.
However, certain provisions of this bill only create the avenue for mischief
and largely destroy academic freedom,” he said.
Mr. Sagoe added that “the
drafters of this bill may have good intentions but leaving certain provisions
of the bill the way it is now will only create avenue for a politician with ill
intentions to manipulate and unduly control policy directions, appointments and
promotions of our public universities in Ghana.”
Speaking at its handing over
ceremony held over the weekend at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and
Technology (KNUST), the president of GRASAG also called for the relocation of
the Pan African Parliament from South Africa. This follows the recent xenophobic
attack on some Africans from the former apartheid country.
Mr. Sagoe stated that “the
continual nasty and inappropriate act of brutality on some Africans who are
going about their normal duty in a fellow African country is unacceptable.”
“The danger is that, the same
hatred if not curtailed could be extended to foreign students pursuing their
post graduate studies in South Africa. And this is why GRASAG is worried.” He
said.
Mr. Sagoe also condemned the
rather weak verbal intervention of the President of South Africa, Cyril
Ramaphosa, which sought to claim that the action is the handiwork of criminals
and the subtle attempt by the South African High Commissioner to Ghana to
justify the barbaric acts, stating that the sayings of these officials “rather
give credence to the fear of many that officialdom has sanctioned the attacks.”
The GRASAG President also used
the opportunity to highlight some activities that the Association intends to
embark on in this academic year.
By Nana Kwasi
