Founder of Meridian University College ordered closure of school
The decision to dissolve the Meridian University College (MUC) was taken by the Chancellor of the college without prior discussion with the management, the Daily Graphic has learnt.
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According to the immediate past President of the MUC, Dr M. K. Nkrumah, out of the blue, the chancellor and founder of the college dropped the dissolution notice by which Nkrumah’s appointment and that of other members of staff were also terminated.
“So you mean there was no discussion with you?” the Daily Graphic asked Dr Nkrumah.
“That is what even pains all of us,” he responded sharply when this reporter caught up with him on the college’s campus at Kasoa Monday.
Dr Nkrumah and the acting Registrar, Mr Joseph Kwesi Odom, had gone to the campus to discuss the way forward with the students, many of whom had heard about the dissolution of the college for the first time in Monday’s edition of the Daily Graphic.
Dissolution notice
The chancellor of the MUC had decided to dissolve the college, citing low enrolment and financial challenges as the basis for the action.
However, the action has been described by education experts as unprecedented.
A ‘special notice’ posted on the college’s noticeboard reads in part: “Students are hereby informed that it has become necessary for the chancellor to dissolve the college due to low patronage resulting in low enrolment; inability of the college to raise funds to support the chancellor and the precarious current financial position of the chancellor”.
The decision, according to Dr Nkrumah, affects the academic pursuits of 37 students, and not 300 students as earlier reported by the Daily Graphic.
Some of the affected students are considering legal action against the authorities of the college to safeguard their academic interest.
Unilateral decisions
The former MUC President said per the dissolution letter, the appointment of all members of staff was terminated forthwith, adding that they were to receive three months’ salary in lieu of the required notice.
He also said the academic staff had met on Thursday to review the examination results of students only for the chancellor to serve them with a dissolution notice the following day.
According to him, the chancellor did not seem to trust the MUC management, adding that the chancellor was the sole signatory to the accounts of the college and took unilateral decisions.
Meeting with students
Dr Nkrumah said he had travelled from Cape Coast to the campus yesterday just for the sake of the students.
At the meeting with the students, he and the acting registrar had explained the measures put in place to deal with the situation but the students expressed concern over some issues.
Dr Nkrumah said the students, for instance, kicked against the payment of the full semester fees of GH¢1,250 for a seven-week sandwich programme to be organised for Levels 100 Lower, 300 Lower and 400 Lower students to complete the academic year.
He said the students were also not happy about the proposal to transfer them to other nearby institutions because they were likely to pay higher fees in those institutions.
Letters to oversight bodies
The MUC is accredited by the National Accreditation Board (NAB) and affiliated to the University of Cape Coast (UCC).
However, the Deputy Registrar of UCC responsible for Institutional Affiliation, Dr Sena Kpeglo and the Executive Secretary of the NAB, Mr Kwame Dattey, had told the Daily Graphic in separate interviews that the MUC did not officially inform their institutions about its dissolution.
But the college is seeking to make amends, having dispatched letters yesterday to UCC, the NAB and the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE), Dr Nkrumah noted.
The Chancellor of the college, Alhaji Ibn Bonsu, could not be reached for comment, as his telephones were off at the time the Daily Graphic called.
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