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Fraudulent Promotion Of UEW Governing Council Chairman Under Current Regime

Article Fraudulent Promotion Of UEW Governing Council Chairman Under Current Regime
MAR 24, 2019 LISTEN

Since my days as a student in St.Mary's Boys Senior High School, I have come to admire and respect Catholic priests so much. I had the opportunity when I was in St.Mary's Boys Senior High School to know these men in cassock very well. They are peacemakers, caring and loving.

On the basis of bias, I should have been the last person to criticise/rebuke one of them for departing from the norm. Let me as a matter of consideration defy the odds which I consider very difficult and speak to the issues as they are for the benefit of shaping UEW. The recent despicable conduct of Reverend Father Anthony Afful Broni affords me the avenue to doubt the virtues of life he learnt at the seminary. He is the most vindictive and callous priest I have ever come across.

The University has been shut down as a result of certain senseless decisions he took by the supporting hands of UEW governing council chairman, Prof. Emmanuel Nicholas Abakah who has proven beyond doubt that, he is incapable of ensuring the smooth and efficient administration of UEW.

Let me not digress from the subject matter at this point in time. The university was created by an Act of parliament as a public institution. It has a statute that spells out appointment and promotion of senior members of the University. The appointment and promotion board is a statutory committee under the governing council. Like I said earlier, the impasse in UEW is not caused by any external factor but rather, the flagrant disrespect of the laws that govern the institution by administrators.

The unlawful dismissal of some senior lecturers of UEW on laughable claims by the most criminally minded VC sparked a protracted agitation in UEW which eventually took students to the street to demonstrate for their sacked lecturers to be reinstated by the governing council.

What is quite strange is that UEW governing council has failed in two years to get this noble institution a chancellor for reasons best known to Prof. Emmanuel Nicholas Abakah and his crooks. This points to a serious breach of section 12(1) Of Act,2004(Act 672). Again the University now operates without adherence to statute 4(a)(b)(c) and (d).

What is also disturbing is that the governing council chairman according to documents before me has surreptitiously been promoted as a Full professor. Some of us are also aware that, on 13th December 2013, Associate Prof. Emmanuel Nicholas Abakah wrote a letter to the Vice-Chancellor for promotion as a full professor, his application fell short of the standard and requirement so he couldn't get the said promotion.

Today as a chairman of the governing council, he has been promoted to the status of full professor which according to the document before me signed by Anthony Afful Broni in 15th January 2019 with reference number, PF/405/154, the fraudulent promotion takes effect from 13 December,2013 to 31st December,2013 with certain financial entitlement in retrospection.

It is also on record on that, Prof.E.N Abakah's application in 2013 didn't go through because it fell short of the requirement. The rules of promotion in the UEW statute provides in explicit terms that, at least 12months(1year) before the date of retirement, the application for same should be submitted for" consideration". In the case of Prof. E.N Abakah, he failed to adhere to the rules so his application was rejected and thrown into the dust bin by the then registrar.

He applied in December 2013 when he was going to retire in September 2014.

Let me deal with what I consider a conflict of interest on the part of the UEW governing council chairman concerning his illegal promotion to the status of full professor.

If you carefully look at the statute of UEW, such promotion falls under the appointment and promotion Board which is a statutory committee(board) under the UEW governing council.[ See statute 22 schedule A]

Now when there is an application for promotion, it takes consideration at the appointment and promotion board and when everything is conclusively done, a report is compiled for onward approval by council. So invariably, it is the council that approves any promotion in UEW. Let it also be clear that, when the APB finishes their work, it goes to council for deliberation for approval [see Statute 21(a)(b)I, II and III)].

Again during such meeting, it is the same governing council chairman who chairs, in this case E.N Abakah would have to chair the deliberation of his promotion to the status of Full Professor. What an unconscious absurdity!

The question is, had it not been his current position as the governing council chairman,would he have been promoted to this status considering the fact that,his application in 2013 fell short of the requirement pursuant to the statute of UEW?

The law also prescribes in mandatory terms that, The Registrar shall communicate the decision of the Appointments and Promotions Board to the applicant within four weeks, and in the case of appointments requiring prior approval by the University Council, within two weeks after such approval.[ see statute 22(IX)]…

The above quoted provision of the law should tell You and I that,if he had met the requirement particularly the first time he mounted the application for promotion in 2013,section 22(IX) of UEW statute wouldnt have been activated today.

Let me use this opportunity to call on the National Council for Tertiary Education and the minister of Education to take this matter up and ensure that,UEW is not dictated by the whims and caprices of some selfish individuals who are bent on sinking the university because of their selfish greed.

#When a professor in the academia fails to appreciate simple common sense, a first-degree holder like my type should be candid enough to point it out without fear.#

Dawda Eric(Equity)

UEW Alumnus

24th March,2019

[email protected]

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