Cape Coast Polytechnic Interim Management Committee Inaugurated

Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Minister of Education acting on the advice of the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE) on Wednesday inaugurated a three-member Interim Management Committee (IMC) for the Cape Coast Polytechnic.

The inauguration of an IMC was necessitated by the absence of a Governing Council and the urgent need to respond to some critical governance challenges in the Polytechnic, following the suspension from office of the Rector.

The IMC, which is under the Chairmanship of Professor Sarah Dankwa of the University of Cape Coast, would take charge of the day-to-day management of the Polytechnic for the next four months or until otherwise advised.

Other members are Dr Ernest Yankson of Cape Coast Polytechnic and Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, a private legal practitioner.

Dr Opoku Prempeh said “A couple of weeks ago, the Ministry and the NCTE received a number of petitions bordering on lack of accountability for use of the Polytechnic’s resources and persistent failure to adhere to due process in the management of the Cape Coast Polytechnic.

“Upon careful review of the issues raised, we came to the conclusion that they were serious enough to require the Rector to step-aside in order to allow for a thorough investigation to be carried out without any interference.

“My office therefore, instructed the Executive Secretary of the NCTE to take the necessary action,” he added.

The NCTE is the regulatory body for the tertiary education sector, with responsibility for ensuring proper administration of all institutions designated as tertiary education institutions.

“Having suspended the Rector, however, we discovered that the top management system of the Polytechnic had been in disarray, as there was no Vice Rector and all sitting Deans were either in acting positions or involved in one court case or another or both” the Minister said.

He explained that the decision to put the IMC in place therefore, was a logical development under the circumstances.

“We have taken great care to get neutral individuals with integrity to carry out the task at hand. They are people of rich collective management experience and leadership skills relevant to the task at hand and their primary task is to oversee the management and administrative business of the Polytechnic,” he said.

Dr Opoku Prempeh said: “The task ahead is no doubt an arduous one, given the particular leadership challenges that Cape Coast Polytechnic faces.

“You will find that the place is awash with needless gossip, rumour and innuendos, some of which are designed to incite gullible constituents to resist the effort to bring sanity into the management of the Polytechnic.

“You have a duty to ensure that you manage the processes and challenges in a fair and transparent manner that will not disrupt the academic work or administration of the Polytechnic”.

He said, “Critically, you have a solemn duty to ensure that in investigating the allegations against Prof Lawrence Atepor, you are unbiased. To a large extent, the stability and continued operations of the Polytechnic rest in your hand”.

The terms of reference for the IMC include consideration of the petitions; and conduct thorough investigations into the allegations made against Prof Atepor, the suspended Rector.

Others are to investigate any other related issues or grievances, provide a comprehensive report on the investigations, with appropriate recommendations, for the attention of the Minister through the NCTE.

The IMC is also to ensure that appropriate governance and management structures are in place and functioning effectively at the Polytechnic.

It is to review all pending court cases involving, especially senior management staff and the Polytechnic with a view to resolving them using internal mechanisms.

It is to submit biweekly summary briefing reports on its activities to the NCTE and the Ministry and a comprehensive report of its activities upon completion of the assignment.

Prof Dankwa on behalf of her colleagues thanked the Ministry for the confidence reposed in them; stating that the IMC would live up to its mandate.

Present at the meeting were Prof Mohammed Salifu, Executive Secretary of the NCTE, Mr Michael Magnus Bentil and Mr Victor Baah Danquah, Registrar and Finance Officer respectively of Cape Coast Polytechnic.

Source: GNA