Public Universities Bill antithetical to the core values of NPP - Lawyer

A professor of law and accounting, Stephen Asare, popularly known as Kwaku Azar has noted that the Public Universities Bill is antithetical to the core values and beliefs of the NPP.

According to him, neither Busia nor Danquah will support the idea of a minister establishing and naming a university or of the President having the power to dissolve the University Council.

In a post on Facebook, he said: “Dombo will certainly frown upon the notion that the University must seek the approval of the minister before they can acquire property.

NPP MPs must stand up for the party’s core values and reject this attempt to bring the universities under presidential control.”

Parliament on Tuesday, approved the Public University Bill at the second reading stage.

The bill seeks to harmonise the structures for the administration of public universities.

However, the Minority has raised concerns over the bill.

The Minority said they will only support the passage of the Bill depending on consultation from groups that wrote to them during the period of recess by the House.

“I must say that stakeholder consultation is very important in the work we do as Parliament that is why article 106 of the 1992 constitution requires that we invite a public memorandum and these are stakeholders who are affected by the Bill and therefore an assurance for the Education Minister that they will be thoroughly engaged and the report of same be submitted to Parliament either than that, we are unable to support this Bill,” Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu said.

Meanwhile, the Education Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh says the Bill in its current form before Parliament incorporates almost every concern from stakeholders

“There has been a thorough consultation between us [Government] and the stakeholders which even necessitated the relaying of same due to the voluminous nature of their inputs compelled us to withdraw and relay same. So it is not about consultation because Parliament in its own way did advertise it for inputs.”

The bill seeks to harmonize the finances, administration, and governance structure of public universities.

When passed, the Bill will give the government power to appoint the majority of members of the University Council.

The Council then has the power to appoint and fire public university officials.

The Bill also gives the President the power to dissolve the University Council which will now have the power to appoint a chancellor.

It further gives effect to the University Council to control the finances of the university and determine the allocation of funds.