In a conversation with an international student from the United States of America who is on a student exchange program at the University of Ghana, there were some cultural shocks, particularly about the current UTAG strike and the need to meet their academic requirements in their home countries within the stipulated time.
Right then a thought occurred to me, sadly, “that’s Ghana’ educational reputation being soiled right for obvious reasons.”
What has ensued in Ghana over the past months, stretching from the final quarter of 2021 till now, clearly gives the impression that credits the proverb; “when two elephants fight, the grass suffers.”
The lack of resolve and the ensuing pointless banter between UTAG and the Ghanaian government leads us to believe that education in Ghana has a long way to go, and that those who will unfortunately bear the crumbs of this ‘political food fight’ to see who gets satisfied first and their egos tickled are students in tertiary institutions.
This isn’t to argue that greater service conditions shouldn’t be demanded. However, timing is crucial in corporate governance and role fulfillment.
That is to say, the government’s machinery for gathering intelligence, particularly around employee unhappiness, should be able to recognize and detect when things like strikes (from whatever source) are imminent.
The finest remedies are those that are prepared to dilute issues miles ahead of time, rather than waiting until they occur. Students, as bait, are within range of this game of thrones and could be shot and wounded at any time.
Every strike is followed by the aggrieved side paying a ransom via an agency. With students as their only ally, university professors want to capitalize on student dissatisfaction, which they hope will translate into public outcry, forcing the government to do their bidding.
Public Universities Set To Shutdown as UTAG Strike Continues
This time, however, this hit is likely to keep grass (students) low for a long time. Universities in Ghana, since 2019, have had to alter academic calendars, improvise, prepare and adapt to systems like online learning that are largely alien to our academic status quo, reducing the number of contact hours between student and lecturers and studying for 6 weeks instead of the usual 16 weeks per semester, parents stretching financial strings to be able to afford fees despite global economic meltdowns, graduations having delayed by months, among others. These cannot be understated.