Preamble
I have read with considerable dismay, anguish and disbelief, calls made
by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Minority Caucus in Parliament
for Pope Francis to reassign Rev. Fr. Prof. Anthony Afful-Broni from
his current position as Vice Chancellor of the University of Education,
Winneba. This call among others was contained in the Minority Caucus’
recent Press Statement regarding past and present happenings at the
University of Education, Winneba.
Ordinarily, I would not spend precious energy and time to write on a
matter which is quite inconsequential to me. But I am not only bothered
by the ongoing impasse on the university campus at Winneba but I am also
compelled by the demands of charity, clarity and justice laid on me by
the gospel to write to inform our Catholic faithful in Ghana and all men
and women of good will who desire to know and understand, to be aware
of false information, misinformation and mischievous political
propaganda that is going on with the impasse at Winneba, while
requesting humbly that all stakeholders, including the Government and
the Minority in Ghana and those who are in unique positions to help
bring closure to the current problems at Winneba, refrain from the
pursuit of parochial partisan interests and act with national interest
first to speedily resolve the ongoing impasse at Winneba before it
degenerates any further.
Brief Genesis of the Current Impasse at Winneba
The problems of Winneba did not start today but go a long way.
Somewhere in 2015, there was a court case brought against the then Vice
Chancellor, Professor Mawutor Avoke, the then Finance Officer, Mr.
Theophilus Senyo Ackorlie and the then Acting Head of Procurement, Mrs.
Mary Dzimey, and some other staff by one Supi Kofi Kwayera, who alleged
that the above-mentioned officers had violated Government procurement
laws and breached University Act, 2004 (Act 672) in awarding some road
contracts on campus. After a very lengthy court process, the above-named
officers were asked to step aside and Rev. Fr. Prof. Anthony
Afful-Broni, the then Pro-Vice Chancellor, was directed to act as Vice
Chancellor.
In the later part of 2017, the University Council gave the Acting Vice
Chancellor the power to work in the full capacity of an Acting Vice
Chancellor. While the meeting that took this decision was reportedly
threatened by one of the Council members, the result of that decision
was that some persons commenced series of personal attacks and character
assassination on the Acting Vice Chancellor and the Chairman of the
University Council, Prof. Emmanuel Nicholas Abakah.
In August 2018, Fr. Prof Afful-Broni was appointed the substantive Vice
Chancellor of the University following the dismissal of a court case
brought by the above-mentioned university officers who were interdicted
in July 2017. Even though the lawyers of the dismissed officers served
notice that there was a Supreme Court case due to be heard on the matter
and that the induction of the Vice Chancellor should not go ahead,
cautioning that the President would stand in breach of the law if he did
attend the investiture, Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni was nonetheless inducted
into office as the 4th Vice Chancellor of the University of Education,
Winneba, on September 17, 2018 at a ceremony attended by the President
who in his speech urged him to unite the factions on campus to bring
about rapid development in ensuring smooth, uninterrupted academic work.
From the time of the induction till the beginning of February this
year, things seemed to have calmed down and everything seemed to be on
course until the middle part of February, when Hon. Alexander
Afenyo-Markins, the MP of the area, who himself has been accused of
unduly interfering in the affairs of the university, began to caution
the Vice Chancellor regarding certain policies and decisions he was
pursuing. Then in March, things came to a head when it became known that
three senior officers of the university had been sacked by the Vice
Chancellor, sparking student demonstrations and riots, leading to the
eventual closure of the university on March 14, 2019. This is where we
are and where we have come as far as the Winneba impasse is concerned.
Some Issues Raised in Minority’s Press Statement and a Catholic Priest’s Response
The Press Statement of the Minority Caucus in Parliament was issued on
March 28, 2019 and co-signed by Hon. Peter Nortsu-Kotoe and Dr. Clement
Apaak. Among the many issues raised by the Minority, the group states
that they are convinced that Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni has embarrassed the
Church with his management of the University of Education, Winneba and
must resign or be dismissed by the President. They cite reasons for this
conviction and their call for his ouster as “incompetence, abuse of
office, corruption, spiteful insolence and inability to resolve the
impasse he birthed and nurtured.” Following this assertion, the Minority
Caucus goes on to say, “Undoubtedly, Prof. Afful-Broni is personally
responsible for the negative developments on the UEW campus and
therefore cannot be part of the solution.” They then call on the
Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) as well as the Office of the
Special Prosecutor (OSP) to investigate several allegations leveled
against him. The Caucus then recommends that Pope Francis as head of the
Catholic Church should recall and reassign Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni to
save the Church from further embarrassment.
Without a doubt, one will be right in describing the issues raised by
the Minority Caucus in Parliament in their Press Statement are
interesting and intriguing. But on a personal level and with regard to
the references to the Pope and the Catholic Church by extension, I
daresay that the arguments the Minority Caucus makes are pathetic,
mischievous and misplaced.
First and foremost, the Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast to which Fr.
Prof. Afful-Broni is incardinated, the Church in Ghana and the world as
a whole do not consider Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni or his work at the
University of Education “an embarrassment.” For those who know and those
who care to know, apart from working hard to build a very vibrant
Catholic Chaplaincy at Winneba, with massive infrastructure to show as
evidence, Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni’s work as a lecturer in Winneba over the
past twenty years or so has been very remarkable. His hardwork has seen
him rise through the ranks from Lecturer to Senior Lecturer, Head of
Department, Dean of Faculty, Pro-Vice Chancellor, Acting Vice Chancellor
and now, substantive Vice Chancellor, all in addition to his work as a
Catholic chaplain with well over 2,000 Church members. If this is not
hardwork, what is it? How many university professors will have the
honour and privilege of serving their universities in these capacities
before their retirement?
It is important to emphasise here that while some may not like his
style of leadership or administration, we must be fair in our assessment
of the man and not deny the fact that he has worked very hard since he
was appointed a lecturer at the university and has justified himself
while serving in all the capacities he had served over the years. If
only a handful of our politicians will work as hard as he had done with
the resources at their disposal, I believe Ghana will be a far better
place than it is today. While the Minority Caucus in Parliament is
entitled to their opinion of his work as “an embarrassment”,
unfortunately, this is not how most people see him and it is certainly
not how the Catholic Church in Ghana sees him. We consider him a great
asset who will have a lot to contribute to the Church in Ghana and
beyond when his work at the university is done.
Secondly, the Minority Caucus in Parliament seems to be confusing
issues in trying to find who to blame for the current woes facing the
university at Winneba. In one breath, they state that Fr. Prof.
Afful-Broni is “solely and personally responsible for the negative
developments on the UEW campus” but in another breath, they blame the
problem on the entrenched positions adopted by the University Council
and the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), local and
national chapters. What approach is the Minority Caucus using? Is it an
“either-or approach” or a “both-and” approach? If it is a both-and
approach, then why is the Caucus saying that Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni is
personally and solely responsible for the impasse. I think that in
matters of such national importance, we must not sound confusing but
always show clarity in thought and word.
Lastly, I consider as intriguing the part in the Minority Caucus’ Press
Statement where they call on the Pope to recall and reassign Fr. Prof.
Afful-Broni. Really? Since when did the Pope become a police officer,
assigning and reassigning Catholic priests in the world? The Minority in
Parliament must read to know how the Catholic Church in the world with
over 1.3 billion members, works. The Church works with the principle of
subsidiarity which among others teaches that issues that are better
handled at the lowest possible level should be handled there and not
taken over by the larger entity. As a result, we work from the local
parishes to (Arch)Dioceses, the National Conference, Regional
Conferences, Continental Conferences before we reach Rome. It is
pathetic that the Caucus bypasses the Archdiocese of Cape Coast to which
Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni is incardinated, bypasses the Bishops’ Conference
and goes all the way to Rome as if the Pope has nothing to do when at
this moment, he is paying a papal visit to Morocco.
It is important for the Minority Caucus in Parliament to understand
that the Pope has a bigger agenda in the light of his God-given mandate
to guide and shepherd the flock of God entrusted to his care. Therefore,
they should leave him out of their political agenda just as they should
leave the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference too. Rev. Fr. Prof.
Afful-Broni was not appointed by the pope or for that matter the
Bishops’ Conference, and so the call for his dismissal should be
reserved for the appointing authority without dragging the pope’s name
into it for mischievous political ends.
Conclusion on Way Forward
It is important that we all work to find an urgent solution to the
current impasse on the Winneba campus and not waste any further time. I
submit that all the stakeholders entrusted with ensuring that university
education at Winneba in particular and Ghana as a whole runs smoothly
and uninterruptedly, particularly, the Council for Tertiary Education,
the Ministry of Education and the various University Councils, must be
proactive and step up their game in executing their job.
This author is not a spokesperson for Fr. Prof. Afful-Broni or the
Bishops’ Conference and is not bothered about what happens to Fr. Prof.
Afful-Broni and whether he continues to serve as Vice Chancellor of
Winneba or not; he has more than paid his dues, and as a Catholic priest
of good standing, he can serve in very many other capacities when he
finally leaves the university. What I am concerned about is the
political football that some politicians and political parties in Ghana
are playing with the crisis at Winneba, and I write to caution that in
pursuing this agenda, care must be taken not to drag the Pope or the
Catholic Church in Ghana into the mess.
The Pope and the Church have a bigger agenda and it is in the light of
this conviction that I consider the call by the Minority Caucus to the
pope to recall and reassign Rev. Prof. Afful-Broni, a misplaced call.
Credit....Ghanaweb
