Strengthening fundamentals of university governance
In the past week, the case of the court judgement for the reinstatement of the dismissed Vice Chancellor (VC) of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), Professor Mawutor Avoke, clearly animates the realities, intricacies and challenges of educational leadership and governance, especially in the higher education sector.
Order
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The order for the reinstatement of the former VC of UEW vividly typifies what happens in several other public institutions; major issues are left unattended and slowly rot till no one can stand the stench of the confusion created.
Do we really need to watch helplessly as an entire university governance system comes crumbling down before we admit to the challenges in the higher education sector?
In 2017, when the Winneba High Court ordered Prof. Avoke to step aside until the case brought against him and the university's Governing Council was determined, I listened and watched in despair as the governance structures within the university were allowed to deteriorate, to the point of a temporary closure of the university.
Years down the line, we ask ourselves, what really went wrong with university governance in Ghana?
The truth is that public universities can and do develop governance challenges. Their problems begin long before it comes into public domain.
However, Ghanaian higher education governance practices can be improved to change this rhetoric.
Prepare
The Ministry of Education (MoE) and its agencies need to undertake the critical role of training the University Governing Council and make it clear to newly inducted leaders. This training may be formalised to improve its impact.
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The content of such training should include topics in good corporate governance, effective communication skills, emotional intelligence, conflict of interest and the implications of abuse of power and wrongful demotions.
It must be made clear that once a council is inaugurated, it ceases to be a group of individuals with different interests, but one entity with a common goal.
Members must learn to be professional in all dealings and ensure the ludicrous sensational display of personal vendetta is kept out of the boardroom and replaced with evidence and research-based reasoning.
University appointees should also be schooled in proper Human Resource practices and the appropriate channels for dealing with dissenting views.
Where a university worker gets on the wrong side of the leadership of an institution, due process should be followed.
Disciplinary action such as, demotion, rotation and removal from office should only be meted out after thorough investigation by the appropriate university body.
Regulate
Although the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) has made significant progress in setting the right standards, it is limited in its powers and so adherence is still heavily voluntary.
With the introduction of the proposed Public Universities Bill, it appears the government has indeed noticed these challenges in higher education governance and is willing to do something about them.
The bill may improve the checks and balances and prevent such wrongful removals as seen in the UEW case.
Extensive stakeholder engagement should, however, be done to ensure that the landmines already identified in the bill are dealt with appropriately before its implementation.
The UEW case is an urgent call to the government and its machinery to ensure that the people they put in places of authority in our universities do not unduly victimise their subordinates and colleagues.
The ordinary Ghanaian working in a university should feel that he can work with integrity and in the spirit of academic freedom.
The call is loud and clear, education governance needs attention now!
The writer is Senior Assistant Registrar, Ghana Communication Technology University (GCTU)/postgraduate student, University of Ghana, Legon. E-mail: [email protected]