Minutes Of The Meeting Held On Friday, 9th June, 1978
July 28, 2026
Transcript
National Council For Higher Education
June 9, 1978
Minutes of the Meeting held on Friday, 9th June, 1978, in the Office of the Chairman of the National Council for Higher Education at 9.30 a.m.
Present:
Mr. C.M.O. Mate, Chairman, N.C.H.E. Chairman
Mr. David Andoh, Chairman of University Council
Mr. F.K. Buah, Chairman, University of Cape Coast
Prof. J. Yanney-rusie, Vice-Chancellor – do –
Prof. E. Bamfo-Kwakye, Vice-Chancellor U.S.T.
Prof. E. Laing, Pro-Vice-Chancellor University of Ghana
Mr. Dodoo, Deputy Registrar -do-
In Attendance
Mr. J.B. Lonotey, Secretary, National Council for Higher Education
Mr. C.K. Gboho Dep. Sec.. – do –
Mr. N. Kotey, Asst. Sec., – do – (Recorder)
Chairman’s Opening Remarks
The Chairman informed the meeting that following a decision taken at the special meeting held by the National Council for Higher Education on June 1, 1978 to consider the Baeta Committee’s Report on the restoration of Normal Activity in the Universities, the Chairman and the Secretary of the National Council for Higher Education wont to Kumasi to inform him of the Council’s concern about the impasse between the Government and the Universities and the consequent recommendations which the Council had made.
The Asantehene informed them that the National House of Chiefs had already decided to meet the Government on the issue single handed and could therefore not go with the persons that had earlier been nominated by the National Council for Higher Education to the Supreme Military Council on the subject.
Upon the invitation of the Secretary to the Supreme Military Council, the Chairman and the Secretary of the National Council for Higher Education went to the meeting between the delegation of Chiefs led by the Asantehene and the Supreme Military Council which was held at the Castle on Monday, 5th June, 1978 but at the instance of the Asantehene were ejected from the meeting room into another room until that meeting ended.
They were however summoned to another meeting the Supreme Military Council at which despite their expression of views of the recommendations of the National Council for Higher Education on the issue as agreed at the 1st June mooting the Supreme Military Council insisted on having written undertakings by individual students and lecturers stating their willingness or otherwise to resume normal university work. (Copies of the report of the Chairman and the Secretary as well as the Basta Committee Report were given to all present at the meeting).
The Chairman then invited the meeting to express its view on how the Ampasse could be resolved in view of the Government’s insistence on having nominal rolls of students and Academic start stating clearly those who were willing or unwilling to resume normal university life.
The following views which are not necessarily mutually exclusive were expressed at the meeting:-
(a) Another Delegation
It was suggested that since no official delegation of the National Council for Higher Education has yet carried the decisions of 1st June to the Supromo Military Council for various reasons a fresh delegation should be nominated to do so as quickly as possible.
In this connection it was further suggested the delegation should consist of members of the National Council for Higher Education only because the National Council for Higher Education is the advisor to the Government on matters affecting Higher Education in Ghana.
(b) Informal Delegations to the Universities
It was suggested that informal delegations of the Council could be sent to the three universities to try to persuade the respective Academic Staffs to resume work in the national interest and also as a sign of respect to their respective University Councils which had already advised them to resume work.
A view was expressed that any attempt to try to get undertakings from Academic staff and students would be futile, however, if for some reason it was decided to go ahead with the exercise it was strongly suggested that only the Academic staff should be made to give the undertaking as the latest refusal of students to attend lectures was a direct consequence of the refusal of Academic staff to give lectures.
Collective undertaking from Academic Staff
It was suggested that since the Academic staff collectively refused to give lectures a collective undertaking to resume lectures should satisfy the Government, as it would be next to impossible to got individual undertakings from Academic staff.
Academic staff to resume work without signing any undertaking
It was suggested that the Academic staff decide to resume and actually start teaching the Supreme Military Council should take that as satisfactory.
Compliance of Supreme Military Council’s request for the undertakings
It was suggested that in the event of the Council’s inability to circum- vant the Supreme Military Council’s request to get a written undertaking from Academic staff and students, the following stops may be taken:-
(i) Letters addressed to all concerned as well as newspaper announcements should be said to inform all concerned that an undertaking each of them would be required to make an undertaking before being admitted on the campus on the day of ro-opening.
(ii) The contents of the undertaking should not be different from what is contained in the Supreme Military Council’s letter requesting for it.
(iii) The undertakings should in the first instance be given to the University authorities who would communicate the results to the National Council for Higher Education to convey it to the Government.
Objections of Mr. David Andoh
Mr. David Andoh objected to his being present at the meeting for two main reasons:
(i) The Vice-Chancellors should have first considered the matter as it affected them rather intimately before the matter was referred to their respective Councils.
(ii) The National Council for Higher Education should have completed taking its decision on the matter before bringing the Chairmen of the University Council’s into the picture.
