Wa, Dec. 20, GNA - Dr Godwin Aflakpui, a Research Scientist, formall= y took over the mantle as Rector of the Wa Polytechnic at the weekend, with a firm resolve to ensure that standards are maintained in the recruitment of staff. This, he said, would help to achieve the institution's vision of becoming a World class centre for applied technology. The new Rector who previously was a Chief Research Scientist at the Crops Research Institute (CRI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), succeeded Professor Sampson Agodzo who has moved to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology after serving four of hi= s original six-year term.

The well attended ceremony was witnessed by a representative of the Minister of Education, colleagues and representatives from other Polytechnics, Research Scientists from the CRI and the Savannah Agricultura= l Research Institute (SARI), heads of educational institutions in Wa, the clergy and the Governing Council of the Polytechnic. Professor Jacob Songsore, Chairman of the Polytechnic's Governing Council, administered the induction oath. Dr Aflakpui said the institution could not achieve excellence if its administrators used sub-standard and mediocre methods in prosecuting their agenda, adding that 93the days of recruiting staff without Masters' degr= ees were dead and gone". Since taking over the mantle of leadership, he said, he had heard comments like 93If the new Rector can soften his stance on the recruitment= of staff and the appointment of Deans of schools and Heads of Departments it would help us." He told teaching staff without Masters' degrees not to panic as they would be systematically supported through scholarships and other opportunities to acquire the minimum qualifications required of them to remain as faculty members.

"We should all remember that we are in stiff competition and some of our competitors in the tertiary education service have raised the bar for the entry level of their lecturers or researchers from Masters to the Doctorate degree just to make sure that the rest of us are placed at lower levels in the single spine salary scale". Dr Aflakpui, the third Rector since the establishment of the Polytechnic in 1999, said his priority would be to implement, review and redevelop the strategic plan of the Wa Polytechnic through participatory planning and action, monitoring evaluation and learning with members of the Strategic Planning Monitoring and Evaluation Team, stakeholders and benefactors. He called on all staff of the Polytechnic to play their roles diligently and effectively but warned that through lawful means, the axe would descend heavily on those who would try to use the importance of their roles to sabotage the progress of the institution. He commended the founding fathers of the Polytechnic for the ground breaking work they did to bring the institution to its present level after having to operate from borrowed premises, and said considering that tremendous amount of work, he would not slow down the wheel of progress. "As a Rector, I am not here to reinvent the wheel but to see that it is well aligned, greased and maintained on schedule so that it can take us to our destination.

"I shall be friendly, calm, gentle but resolute and solid as a rock in the pursuit of excellence in achieving our vision and corporate strategic plan". Alhaji Issahaku Salia, the Upper West regional Minister, appealed to the institution to design short programmes specifically tailored to improve the capacities of small enterprises in the area. "In this modern era, the business community in the Region need to develop their skills in order to be competitive", he stated. The Regional Minister expressed the conviction that this would mitigate the poverty situation in the Region and the nation in line with th= e mission of both the Polytechnic and the Government.