After all the pomp and pageantry that characterised the sod cutting ceremony by President Mills to commence work on the proposed university for the Volta Region, it has now emerged that then~ are no funds to execute the project. According to a Deputy Minister of Education, Mr. Mahama Ayariga, though the design for the proposed University of Allied Sciences had been completed, with President Mills also cutting the sod for the start of the project, its execution would not be possible within the stated time frame. He noted that the government was now sourcing for funds from China to construct the proposed state university in the region. Mr. Mahama Ayariga said a draft bill for the establishment of the university had already been approved by cabinet, and would soon be presented to Parliament for approval. The Deputy Education Minister said when the bill is approved and funds secured, the government would take all the necessary steps to facilitate the project. The former Member of Parliament (MP) for Bawku Central, who was inspecting temporary facilities that would be used to start the University of Allied Sciences in the Ho Municipality, noted that public universities like the University of Ghana would be brought on board to assist the Volta University with its academic programmes. The decision, he noted, had to do with the level of their expertise, which he said, would have a positive bearing on the new university. Among the structures inspected for the commencement of the proposed state university include an old building at the Government Secretarial School, now being used by squatters. There is also the new nurse’s quarters at the Ho Leprosarium, the Mothers Lodge at the Volta Regional Hospital, and a Guest House for the Volta Regional Coordinating Council (VRCC) at Klefe, as well as a military facility at Akoefe. These existing facilities, The Chronicle learnt, would no longer be used for the original purposes for which they were built, but would rather be converted into lecture rooms, hostel facilities and accommodation for lecturers, the Vice Chancellor and administrative staff of the university. Mr. Ayariga, who was not happy with the Government Secretariat structure being occupied by squatters, explained that the money to be used for the rehabilitation of the building could have been spent on building a new hostel facility. The Deputy Minister of Education, after inspecting the rest of the structures, noted that he was fully satisfied that the proposed university would be on its own, in three years time. He added that admissions into the proposed university would commence this year, 2011, noting that the most important aspect of a university was to put in place the various faculties. The Minister also inspected ongoing work on hostel projects under the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETfund), and expressed the hope that when completed, it would go a long way to help address infrastructure problems confronting the Ho Polytechnic. Source: The Chronicle/Ghana