PRESS CONFERENCE ORGANIZED BY THE CONCERNED PATRIOTS OF CAPE COAST ON THE 29TH OF AUGUST, 2011 IN CAPE COAST AT 10:00 AM

C-Poly On The Butchering Table Of President Mills

After Professor Mills and the NDC had campaigned on the mantra of ‘adze wo fie a oye’ to win the votes of the people of Central region, Prof Mills and the NDC are embarking on moves which seek to dent the public image of Cape coast Polytechnic and it is about time the world got to know how badly politically mutilated the body of Cape Coast Polytechnic has become under Prof. Mills presidency.

The Prof Mills-led NDC government has pathetically turned Cape Coast Polytechnic into an ordinary educational institution other than a tertiary institution that we can all boast of for reasons of political manipulation and witch-hunt.

Since January, 2009, the Prof Mills government has harassed, intimidated and hounded out of office, the then substantive rector, full Professor R. K. Nkum, on the ill-grounds of his alleged NPP political affiliation. Sadly, Prof Nkum is an indigene of the Central region precisely from Agona Bobikuma.

In line with the usual NDC political manipulations at Cape Coast Polytechnic, an ordinary lecturer(indeed a 61-year old man on contract),who had been promised a full-year Acting Rectorship position, was illegally appointed as Acting Rector whilst there was a vice rector who should have automatically become the acting rector in the absence of the rector. This illegal acting rector was in office for seven months until the Cape Coast High Court (2) ruled to the contrary.

President Mills’ Council Chairman, Dr F. Ato Cobbina of Stovie Dental Clinic, with a politically-jaundiced eye without recourse to any legitimate law, has developed the penchant for maligning and victimizing any staff of the Polytechnic who expresses a contrary view.

The Concerned Patriots of Cape Coast have the evidence to the effect that the MP for Cape Coast Constituency, Hon Ebo Barton Odro has given unflinching support to the course of the Council Chairman, Dr F. Ato Cobbina. That, the MP’s wife, Mrs Barton Odro has been illegally appointed to the Cape Coast Polytechnic governing Council and by extension being a member of the Search Committee for Rectorship position contrary to Section 6 sub-section 1(L) of the Polytechnics Law of 2007(Act 745), which states inter alia: “a representative from the Ministry of Education NOT below the rank of a director’’. How come Mrs. Barton Odro, who is an ordinary lecturer at the African Studies Department in UCC and not at the level of a director and also not an employee of the above specified ministry, is representing the Ministry of Education on the Cape Coast Polytechnic governing Council? This is a clear illegality and fraud under the Professor of law as president of our dear country and being spearheaded by an NDC law-maker (Hon Barton Odro) in favour of his wife and NDC apparatchiks.

The NDC C-Poly TEIN Patron, Dr Lawrence Atepor, a cohort of both Hon Barton Odro and Dr F. Ato Cobbina (the Council Chairman) , is scheming seriously to be illegally appointed as C-Poly Rector. Dr Lawrence Atepor has long declared himself the next Rector of C-Poly regardless of the fact that per the requirements, Dr Lawrence Atepor, is not qualified. We are aware of an alleged caveat “that NO Professor or whatever the title maybe from Cape Coast or Central Region SHALL be short-listed” by one Paul Djandu of National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE). A classic case in point is where two (2) outstanding Professors were cynically disqualified after interview. Two other Professors’ applications were rejected on the basis that they could not meet the deadline for filing of applications. Grapevine source has it that there has been a warning to indigene professors and people from Cape Coast and Central region in general not to apply.

The Atta Mills-led NDC government’s resolve to exclude qualified Cape Coasters and indigenes of the Central Region from the Rectorship and other positions in Cape Coast Polytechnic is confirmed by the short-listing of Dr Lawrence Atepor, who by every academic measure is unqualified. It will interest Ghanaians to know that Dr Lawrence Atepor, who has now been shortlisted for the Rectorship of Cape Coast Polytechnic, was disqualified in the first instance that he applied for the Rectorship but per political maneuverings cum manipulations behind the scenes, all the qualified Professors who were interviewed were disqualified and nominations re-opened to favour a particular candidate and no wonder Dr Lawrence Atepor re-applied and now being shortlisted. To confirm the short-listing of Dr Lawrence Atepor, his supporters, in jubilation, have been calling some members of staff of the Polytechnic warning and threatening them of victimization after their candidate has been confirmed as the Rector. Surprisingly, Dr Lawrence Atepor has not held management positions at the specified levels for the minimum ten -year requirement. How come he has been shortlisted against the professors from the Central region who applied for the Rectorship position?

Is Professor Mills’ NDC government changing the scholarly order in our tertiary institutions that now lecturers who do not meet the minimum ten-year management positions experience are more qualified than professors especially when it comes to his home region tertiary institution for a political expediency?

We are urging all MPs, chiefs, opinion leaders and the youth in Cape Coast and the Central region for that matter to join us in calling on President Mills to ensure that fair play, devoid of political manipulations and maneuverings, is brought to bear in the appointment of the next Rector for Cape Coast Polytechnic. Also, we assure the president that we are fiercely going to resist the appointment of Dr Lawrence Atepor as the Rector of Cape Coast Polytechnic in the face of the political manipulations that have taken place to favour him. The president should not forget of his ‘adze wo fie a oye’ slogan in 2008. Thank you.

Signed Anthony Arku-Korsah (Spokesperson) Tel: 0246291531

MEMBERS Robert Amissah Vida Amponsah Adu Yeboah Kweku Boateng Mustapha Mohammed