Wa UDS likely to be named after S. D. Dombo - Former Pro-Vice Chancellor hints

Following the proposed renaming of the Navrongo campus of the University for Development Studies (UDS) after C. K. Tedam, the immediate past Chairman of the Council of Elders of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) who passed on recently, it has emerged that plans have been conceived by government to rename the Wa campus of the same university after S. D. Dombo, another founding member of the NPP.

President Nana Akufo Addo last weekend announced his decision to rename the Navrongo campus of UDS after C.K. Tedam when Parliament approves a bill to seal its autonomy.

“Once the processes are completed, it would be referred to as the C. K. Tedam University of Technology and Applied Sciences in honour and memory of this great Ghanaian” the President disclosed.

The decision has however been strongly criticised by some scholars and the opposition National Democratic Congress who have all questioned the meritorious credentials of the late C.K. Tedam to have the university named after him.

In an interview on The PM Show on Bolgatanga based Yem Radio monitored by MyNewsGh.com, the former Pro-Vice Chancellor of the university Prof. David Millar revealed that the renaming of the Navrongo campus of the institution after Mr. Tedam did not come as a surprise to him because grapevine information suggest that plans are far advanced to rename also the Wa campus after Simon Diedong Dombo who was a founding member of the Northern People’s Party, Member of Parliament in the first Republic and Minister for Health then Interior during the Busia government. He died in 1998.

“This announcement over the weekend for me wasn’t new because we heard in the grapevine that the Navrongo campus would be named after Tedam and Wa would be named after S. D. Dombo. So for me it wasn’t a surprise” he said.

According to him, the decision to rename the various campuses of the university after they have been dismembered is a political decision and also the prerogative of the President who is the Chancellor of the institution.

“The President is doing what is within his powers as the Chief Executive of the University or Chancellor. It is within his right to create a new institution and name it whatever or better still separate and rename already existing ones like we are seeing” he added.

While downplaying suggestions that the renaming of the institution may affect its image and appeal globally, Prof. Millar only expressed fear that the name may not be sustained as a future change of government may also result in a decision to reverse the name.