15th March, 1971.
The Chairman,
University Council,
c/o Ministry of Justice,
Accra.
Dear Sir,

RE: STUDENT GRIEVANCES

We, the students of the University of Ghana, Legon, have deemed it necessary to appeal to you for redress of grievances we have harboured over some time now.
Our appeal stems from the fact that our relations with the Vice-Chancellor has become strained as was evidenced by our massive walk-out on the University Congregation Day. It is therefore virtually impossible for us to negotiate with the same person who is the cause of the present upheaval.

It would be recalled that since Dr. Alex Kwapong took over as Vice-Chancellor there have been two such open protests by the entire student body, not against the Government or any external body, but against the University Authorities. This no doubt shows that his human relations is poor and he is therefore unsuitable to remain in an administrative office of this delicate nature.

We are deeply convinced that in so far as he remains in office, student unrest of such nature are inevitable, because we have lost complete confidence in him. The Vice-Chancellor’s failure to appropriate the seriousness of the present problem coupled with the usual disinterested way/handles student affairs have produced frustration in the student body. Our fear is that this frustration stands the danger of producing aggressive tendencies in the students.

In the interest of order we would be grateful if you could kindly step in to redress our grievances. The existence of any conditions of anarchy will not give us the type of disciplined education necessary for building good citizens.

Meanwhile, we have attached hereto a ghost list showing all our grievances.

Yours sincerely,
(Harry Palooor)
President

cc: The Rt. Hon. Dr. K.A. Badia,

    PRIME MINISTER,
     The Castle,
      OSU.

Dr. Alex Kwapong.
Vice-Chancellor,
University of Ghana,
Legon.

STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE COUNCIL
University of Ghana
Legon

GRIEVANCES  OF THE STUDENT-BODY

1. Report of Commission of Inquiry: We demand immediate publication of the Report of the Commission of Inquiry into the University of Ghana, Legon.
2. Examination Fees: These are too exorbitant at Legon and must be reduced. Below is an example of the statistical analysis of Exam fees at the three Ghanaian Universities for degree courses;

UCCC    N₵ 32.00
UST Not more than N₵ 10.00
UG (Legon)  N₵ 40.00

3. Vacation Residence Charges:

Legon pays the highest among the three Universities. Below are figures of the three universities to compare:

	UCCC	UST	Legon
Boarding and lodging per student per day:	N₵1.00	N₵1.00 ( free for final year students )	N₵1.25 ( reduced temporarily to N₵1.00)
Lodging only:	25 NP	Free	40 NP ( abolished altogether and temporarily restored )

4. Bookshop Prices: Too dear, though the University makes enormous profits on book sales. Prices must therefore he reduced,
5. Campus Security System: This is appalling and students’ suggestions for improvements

have either been rejected or accepted but not implemented. We have therefore asked that, if in difficulty, Legon could take  a cue from either UST or UCCC, or from both.

6. Transport System: To be reorganized to benefit the students. In view of our large numbers (about 2,500) we want 5 buses to be identified for student use.

8. The Executive Engineer: The present British expatriate Executive Engineer cannot appreciate the problems of Ghanaian students in the right perspective. His removal is, in fact, long overdue.
9. Student Representation: We want student representation on the Hall Councils, the Academic Board, and the University Council, since decisions taken at these levels directly affect students’ welfare.
10. Removal of the Vice-Chancellor: In view of the intransigent and uncompromising attitude of the present Vice-Chancellor (Professor A.A. Kwapong) to students’ problems it is only natural that our confidence in him be seriously shaken. We therefore demand his immediate removal.

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