KNUST accident: UPSA Dean urges parents to visit children on campus frequently

The Dean of Graduate Studies at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Dr. John Mensah Mawutor, has charged parents to get closer to their children after they are admitted into universities to help shape their lives.

He said when parents show such concern whilst their wards are in school, it helps mould them well in an environment where peer pressure thrives at the blindside of school authorities.

Dr Mawutor’s concerns come after three students of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) died in two separate accidents in the school on Saturday, March 27, 2021.

The first incident occurred when a car with five students run into a tree around 3 am, leading to the death of two on the spot while one is in critical condition.

It has also emerged that one of the two students who died in a gory accident at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology over the weekend is a final year medical student and the son of MP for Nalerigu-Gambaga, Alhaji Seidu Issifu Baba.

The cause of the car crash is not known yet, but some students have said they believe the group of five were returning from clubbing. In the other accident on campus, a student accidentally fell off at the Unity Hall and died.

The car crash has generated discussions about the freedom of university students whilst in school, but Dr. Mawutor believes the university authorities have little to do when it comes to instilling discipline in tertiary students.

Speaking on Morning Update on TV XYZ, the lecturer noted that although there are ways of controlling the lives of students who reside in various hostels belonging to their schools, parents should be seen visiting their children in school to know how they are doing.

“It's unfortunate that some [parents] may not even visit their children when they go to the university because they think they are old,” he said whilst charging parents to be interested in the campus life of their children.

He added, “Sometimes the fact that you may pay some visit in the course of the week or the month they[ the children] still have this feeling that my parents’ eyes are on me and for that matter whatever that I am doing I must be circumspect in doing them.”