Make Diligence, Honesty And Integrity Your Hallmark--Bawumia To Graduates

In order to achieve one's dreams and aspirations in life it will take a great deal of diligence, honesty and integrity to meet the target.

This, is acoording to Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, who has challenged graduands at the Pentecost University College to exhibit these principles.

He entreated them to serve humanity with sincerity and integrity, noting that, those values are pivotal in building a Ghana Beyond Aid.

"No matter where you find yourself, you're not to look for material things that are not what life is about...you're to serve humanity.

"You're going to look around and see ostenticity, pettiness and greed so much on display...you need to think and say to yourselves...this is not the way to build a Ghana beyond Aid," the Vice President pointed out.

He noted that as they venture into the world of work, they would meet many naysayers who would discourage them from exploring and pursuing their potentials, and urged them to remain focused and utilise the knowledge and skills acquired to make it in life.

He said the vision to build a Ghana Beyond Aid should not be seen as one of the political platitudes in the past, saying that the President's vision would be translated into policies and strategies to better the lives of the people.

He, therefore, called for attitudinal change and a change in the value system as well as build a culture of entrepreneurship in order to accomplish the agenda.

Vice President Bawumia made the call at the 10th Congregation of the Pentecost University College, in Accra.

The event was held under the theme: "Ghana Beyond Aid-The Role of Tertiary Education".

The University started as a Mission University, which was established by the Church of Pentecost to train full time ministers and accredited by the National Accreditation Board in November 2004 to run other academic programmes.

Vice President Bawumia assured of government's commitment to support the University to obtain a Charter in order to become a fully-fledged tertiary institution.

Dr Bawumia said tertiary education institutions have the fundamental mandate of educating the next generation of the country's human resource, with skills and creativity to attain the President's vision.

Additionally, they were supposed to increase the country's human resource base and even export some skilled personnel abroad to earn the country foreign exchange.

"Tertiary institutions must help us build good society by inculcating good core value system in our conduct as individuals, as community members, as citizens, and as nation builders, "he emphasised.

The Vice President gave the assurance that government was determined to provide the tertiary educational institutions with the requisite infrastructure to absorb potential graduates from the Free Senior High School Policy.

Touching on some policies implemented by the government over the past 23 months to ensure efficiency in public service delivery, Dr Bawumia mentioned the paperless ports system, national digital address system, e-business registration, mobile money payment interoperability system, among others as 'soft infrastructure" to drive the modernisation of the economy.

Apostle Dr Daniel Peter Walker, the Rector of the University, said private universities have central roles to play in helping the nation to attain the Ghana beyond Aid.

He assured of the University's support to achieve the government agenda.

He commended government for implementing the Free SHS policy.

However, he identified some challenges facing private universities, including low enrolment, inadequate funds for their operations, high affiliation and assessment fees, high accreditation fees, while some mentoring institutions refused to approve programmes.

Apostle Walker, therefore, appealed to the Government to create a congenial environment for private universities to operate effectively and access the Ghana Education Trust Fund to improve their infrastructure base.

Apostle Eric Kwabena Nyamekye, the Chancellor of the University, pledged the University's resolve to continue supporting government in meeting the needs of the citizens.

Apostle Nyamekye, who is also the Chairman of the Pentecost Church, assured of the Church's resolve to partner government in providing basic infrastructure for the citizens including classroom blocks, potable water, and prison complex to decongest the prisons and CHPS compounds.

In all, 1,654 students graduated comprising, 827 graduates, 51 undergraduates, 665 certificates and 111 diploma students.

GNA

By Godwill Arthur-Mensah, GNA