The attention of the management of the University of Education-Winneba (UEW), has been drawn to a publication in The Chronicle Newspaper VOL:26 NO.14 of Friday February 3, 2017 page 5 titled: “Student Petition BNI over alleged extortion, thievery @UEW-K Campus” In the said publication, the students alleged the following: UEW-K Campus extorted GHS500 from […]
The post Rejoinder: “Student petition BNI over alleged extortion, thievery @ UEW-K Campus” appeared first on The Chronicle - Ghana News.
The attention of the management of the University of Education-Winneba (UEW), has been drawn to a publication in The Chronicle Newspaper VOL:26 NO.14 of Friday February 3, 2017 page 5 titled: “Student Petition BNI over alleged extortion, thievery @UEW-K Campus”
In the said publication, the students alleged the following:
- UEW-K Campus extorted GHS500 from students who made part payment in the previous semester.
- Students were forced to pay GHS10.00 before registration in addition to the GHS50.00 being paid.
- No notice was issued with regards to the monies being collected from the students.
- Only Kumasi Campus of the UEW was charging the said amount.
We wish to respond that:
- It is absolutely not true that only the Kumasi Campus of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) is collecting the GHS50.00 and GHS10.00 for delayed fees payment charge and replacement of clearance form respectively. The policy is being implemented on all the four campuses of UEW -Winneba, Kumasi, Ashanti Mampong and Ajumako.
- The decision to charge the GHS50.00 and the GHS10.00 was taken by the Governing Council of the University of which students were represented. The management of the Kumasi campus was only implementing decision of the UEW council. The fixing of fees and the mode of payment are done by the Finance Committee and approved by the University Council before it could be implemented.
- The issue of the delayed fees payment charge was duly explained to the students who opted for the “flexible payment plan”. The students concerned signed, indicating their acceptance of the conditions being the delayed fees payment charge.
- We wish to state that the policy of payment of student fees are as follows:
- Students shall pay their fees in full at the beginning of the academic year before being issued with a financial clearance form to enable them register.
- Students who wish to take advantage of the installment fees payment by installment policy in line with the 2008 Finance Committee approved guidelines shall submit an application indicating an agreed payment plan upon which a temporal financial clearance form shall be issued to enable them register within the approved period of payment. The procedure for the application to go on a payment plan has to be submitted by the student through the Head of Department, the Dean, the Deputy Registrar for the Division of Academic Affairs to the Finance Officer.
- Appropriate charges shall be included in all installment payments. For example, undergraduate students who opt for an initial installment above 50% of total fees shall be liable to pay a delayed fees payment charge ranging from GHS50 – GHS150 for the period of 1 day to above 210 days.
Also, students who make an initial installment below 50% of total fees shall pay a delayed fees payment charge ranging from GHS80 – GHS200 for a period of 1 day to above 210 days. Students who are not able to pay the penalty after the deadline will be asked to defer their programme of study. The approved arrangement for full fee payment is as indicated below:
APPROVED ARRANGEMENT FOR FULL FEE PAYMENT | |||||
a. Under-Graduate Students (Regular, Sandwich & Distance Education) | |||||
Fee Paid | Fees Outstanding | Fee Payable/Duration | |||
0-2.99 months | 3-4.99 months | 5-6.99 months | Above 7 months | ||
1-89 days | 90-179 days | 180-209 days | Above 210 days | ||
GHS | GHS | GHS | GHS | ||
Above 50% | Below 50% | 50.00 | 80.00 | 120.00 | 150.00 |
Below 50% | Above 50% | 80.00 | 120.00 | 150.00 | 200.00 |
b. Post-Graduate Students (Regular, Sandwich & Distance Education) | |||||
Fee Paid | Fees Outstanding | Fee Payable/Duration | |||
0-2.99 months | 3-4.99 months | 5-6.99 months | Above 7 months | ||
1-89 days | 90-179 days | 180-209 days | Above 210 days | ||
GHS | GHS | GHS | GHS | ||
Above 50% | Below 50% | 150.00 | 200.00 | 250.00 | 300.00 |
Below 50% | Above 50% | 240.00 | 280.00 | 320.00 | 350.00 |
- The issue of the GHS 50.00 Charge was explained to the student leaders comprising the SRC, GRASSAG, ESA and NUGS at meetings with management. The leaders appealed to management to waive the charge.
However, it was explained to the students that it would not be possible because it was Council’s decision and therefore could not be changed by the Kumasi Campus management. The student leaders were advised to petition the University Council through the laid down procedures.
- The allegation that all students have been asked to pay GHS 10.00 is totally false and very misleading. The fee is charged for the replacement of clearance note, just like the replacement of the student’s ID card.
The records available at the Finance Office indicated that so far only 17 students out of the student population of over thirteen thousand have paid for the replacement of the clearance note. In percentage terms, it is only 0.13 percent. The situation is not bad as Messrs Eric Dawda and Eric DumenuAkatsi portrayed to the whole world.
- We wish to state that, there are laid down procedures for addressing students’ grievances in the university. This is contained in the Undergraduate Students Handbook on Rules and Regulations (2008), General Rules and Regulations Sections 5.0 and 19.0 Channels of Communication which state inter alia:
“All students shall follow the following procedure to have their academic and non-academic requests met and their complaints resolved. No student shall deal directly with the Vice-Chancellor except through the procedure and channels, starting from the top of each sub-section (Section 5.0).”
There is also provision for appeals available to students, “As a last resort, appeals or inter-faculty matters may be made to the Vice-Chancellor and if necessary to the University Council whose decision shall be final (Section 5.7).”
We wish to conclude that Messrs Eric Dawda and Eric DumenuAkatsi did not use or exhaust the internal procedures to resolve complaints in the University. We also wish to reiterate that the issue does not apply to all students as being alleged by Messrs Eric Dawda and Eric DumenuAkatsi. It applies to only those students who opted for the flexible fees payment plan. It is not compulsory but an option available for students who could not afford to pay all the fees before registration.
We would like to assure the students, parents, and the general public that the University of Education, Winneba does not endorse collection of illegal fees or charge.
Dr C.Y. Akwaa-Mensah
Registrar
Centre 2nd
Asantehemaa grateful to Otumfuo
The post Rejoinder: “Student petition BNI over alleged extortion, thievery @ UEW-K Campus” appeared first on The Chronicle - Ghana News.
Read Full Story
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Instagram
Google+
YouTube
LinkedIn
RSS