Scores of students at the Kumasi Technical University on Monday (14 August) picketed campus to protest a directive for students to defer the ongoing academic year due to late payment of fees.
The students were outraged over the directive and called on the school’s management to reconsider the decision.
The school had beefed up its internal security because of the students’ announced protest.
At least 600 students have been affected by this latest development. Some of them who spoke to Asaase News say they feel targeted.
“We are not against the decision they have taken, we just plead with management to reconsider this decision because we still have some final year students who have suffered to do their practicals so they can’t take this risk. We know we have erred but we want management to at least consider our plight”, one of the aggrieved students told Asaase News.
“I can’t write my exams and you are telling me to defer, even if I stay in the house I can’t get money to start things afresh. We are hearing that some students have been pardoned. We started this school in a good note but we are pained,” another said.
But the university has mounted a spirited defence insisting that the action of the students is unjustified.
Acting university relations officer Joshua Appiah says the university will not back down on its decision.
“The university has an academic calendar they operate with. Whenever we start a semester it is expected that every student registers. And so after 29 May, we realised most of them had not paid. We issued series of extensions following the SRC’s petition.
“Those who worked within the extension period had registered. So if you have paid [your fees] and has still not registered then you stand deferred”, Appiah said.
As you can see campus is very quiet. Exams is in progress and we have beefed up our internal security. We have also spoken to the police to avert any unforeseen circumstances that may break out”, he added.
Reporting by Jonathan Ofori in the Ashanti Region
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