K-Poly SRC executives deny misuse of funds

The executives of the Student Representative Council (SRC) of the Kumasi Polytechnic have described as false, the allegations of embezzlement and mismanagement of funds leveled against them by a section of the students.

The SRC says its Central Committee has since its assumption in office, subjected itself to audit by auditors and submitted the report to the Vice Rector, the Registrar, and the Head of the Finance Department as required under Article 17 the SRC constitution.

Consequently, it says the demonstration staged by the concerned students to demand for accountability was inappropriate because, arguing the students failed to channel their concerns through the right sources.

“The appropriate quarters that every student who wishes or demands accountability to certain developments by the Council is the Students’ Parliament. It is at the Students’ Parliament that, the central committee is made to account to the entire student body through representatives," the President of the SRC, Thomas Owusu Asante, has said.

“Therefore, we expected the concerned students to channel their grievances through the students’ parliament which holds the legislative power to address such issues, but not to resort to demonstration,” he added.

He admitted that they goofed in the organisation of the SRC week celebration which has widely been criticised by the students.

“We admit that there were lapses in the organization of the SRC week celebration which all boils down on ineffective communication, but students also share portion of the blame. We posted all the necessary information relating to the SRC week celebration on the notice board, four days to the celebration but students refuse to visit the notice board”.

Mr Asante said, the SRC justified the reduction of the one-week celebration to a three-day celebration, claiming it is because the academic performance of students has been greatly affected by the week celebration over the years.

“It is disheartening that the aggrieved students could go ablaze just because the one-week celebration has been reduced to three days and also the failure of the council to deliver a live band and Guinness promise which was as a result of sponsorship failure”.

The SRC was surprised that, despite its achievements of issuing a scholarship for 50 students through the Little Drop Fund, purchasing 1,000 pieces of lecture hall furniture, contributing GHC 400,000 to the SRC hostel project at Adako Jachie, and providing solar power system at some vital points of the campus among others, some students were not satisfied with their work.

The executives claimed to have delivered as expected of them, particularly as far as the subject of academic excellence, student’s welfare, and developmental projects are concerned.

Background

On Monday, 25th April some concerned students of Kumasi polytechnic staged an impromptu demonstration to demand accountability from the SRC executives who they accused of mismanagement and misappropriation of funds.

They abandoned their lecture halls to demonstrate in a move to get the executives account for their stewardship, particularly regarding the just ended SRC Week Celebration, which the students say, was poorly organized.