Suhuyini weighs in on high hostel fees at universities

A member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) communications team, Hamza Suhuyini, has raised concerns about what he describes as exploitative hostel charges across tertiary institutions.

Speaking on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana on May 8, 2026, Suhuyini particularly addressed the disconnect between the high cost of student accommodation and the quality of services provided in many private hostels around university campuses.

He said the situation has reached unacceptable levels, with some students forced to live in overcrowded and unhygienic environments.

“Students are living under terrible conditions. Some even sleep close to toilet areas. Yet these hostel owners continue collecting huge sums of money while providing poor services,” he indicated.

Suhuyini argued that despite the increasing fees charged by hostel operators, basic sanitation conditions are often ignored, leaving students to cope with deteriorating facilities.

According to him, the problem is not new, as poor sanitation and inadequate infrastructure have long characterised both traditional halls and private hostels in some institutions.

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Reflecting on his student days at the University of Ghana, he recalled how students struggled with broken toilet systems and a lack of running water, conditions that have persisted in various forms.

He also recounted how students at the time coined the phrase ‘SOS’, meaning ‘sh*t on sh*t’, to describe the state of some washrooms on campus.

“The toilets were so bad that when you went there, you had to manage with papers and continue using them because there was no proper sanitation,” he said.

Suhuyini noted that the lack of water supply made it impossible to properly maintain hygiene in many facilities, forcing students to improvise under difficult conditions.

“There was no water flowing, so you could not flush. Students had to find ways to manage under those conditions,” he added.

He stressed that the issue has now become even more worrying due to rising accommodation costs, particularly in privately owned hostels around campuses.

Suhuyini therefore called for urgent intervention from authorities, including President John Dramani Mahama, to address the widening gap between cost and quality in student accommodation.

“Politics aside, I think all of us should take advantage of this platform and appeal to His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama to take this matter seriously. This situation is unacceptable,” he said.

His comments come amid growing public scrutiny of hostel pricing in Ghana’s tertiary education sector, with student bodies and advocacy groups calling for regulatory action against what they describe as arbitrary rent hikes despite poor conditions in some cases.

MRA/VPO

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