The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has reacted to discussions on various media platforms and in publications concerning Nazir Notei Alema who is reported to have joined the terrorist group, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), recently.
A statement issued last Monday said although the university’s records showed that Alema was a student of the institution from 2010-2014 and read Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Rural Development, “the hard truth of the matter is that while he remains an alumnus of KNUST, he is no longer in statu pupilari of the institution and, therefore, cannot be tagged as a bona fide student”.
“We are saddened by persistent attempts by the media in their reportage to overstretch and link KNUST to the issue; a link that is not there, which tarnishes our hard-won international reputation,” it added.
Personal decision
It said the fact that Alema was a past student of the university did not mean that personal or private decisions made by the individual should be linked to the institution and urged all and sundry to remain circumspect and allow the security agencies to systematically do their work.
That, according to the statement, would ensure that should there be any terrorist cells, real or potential, they would be dealt with.
University appalled
The university assured all Ghanaians and the world at large that KNUST, as an institution, “abhors the activities of any such groups and fully supports any investigations the national security agencies will initiate”.
It said unnecessary tagging of KNUST would cost the whole nation dearly because the university had been in existence for over 60 years and was a prized jewel in the crown of Ghana, having trained 99 per cent of our engineers, pharmacists, architects and a host of other scientists.
It stressed that the university completely distanced itself from any reported association of a former student with terrorism, adding that KNUST upheld and instilled high ethical values in its students and staff and, therefore, it could not be a hub for breeding miscreants.
