A Political Science lecturer at the University of Ghana has faulted President Akufo-Addo’s response to critics on the government’s draft bill on administering public universities.

Prof. Ransford Gyampo, reacting to the President’s response said the statement might have been written for him.

“I want to believe it was a prepared statement that he went to read,” Prof. Gyampo told JoyNews Tuesday.

Prof. Gyampo, Head of European Studies at the University of Ghana, is among the top critics of the draft bill.

The bill when passed into law, would among others make the majority membership of all public universities’ governing council, appointees of the President.

The representation of labour unions on the councils would also be scrapped and replaced with a single representative on a rotational basis.

Admission to public universities would be centralised.

The government says the reasoning behind these revolutionary changes is to harmonise the administration of the universities.

But experts are not convinced. Prof Gyampo, for instance, believes the government wants to curtail academic freedom.

Prof Ransford Gyampo 

Other commentators say this would breed corruption in the awarding of contracts by the universities.

But Akufo-Addo and his NPP government are adamant.

The president said the bill will be laid before the legislative arm of government in 2019 as consultations have been concluded.

In his response to those fighting the draft bill, Akufo-Addo described the concerns as “flimsy” and born out of “mischief-making and are disingenuous.”