Political Science Department honours two lecturers

Accra, Dec. 15, GNA - The Political Science Department of University of Ghana, Legon, on Tuesday honoured two lecturers for their immense contribution to the achievements of the Department and their elevation to higher fields of endeavour in their academic career.

They are, Professor Joseph Roland Atsu Aryee, Former Head of the Department and Dean of Faculty of Social Studies and Professor Kwame Boafo-Arthur, Former Head of the Department. Professor Aryee would assume duty in January next year, as the Deputy Vice Chancellor and Head of College of Humanities at the University of Kwazulu Natal in South Africa and Professor Boafo-Arthur has since November this year, been appointed Director of Legon Centre for International Affairs(LECIA).

They were presented with plaques and gifts by staff of the Department and the Political Science Students Association (POSSA) at a send-off party organized by the Department in their honour. Dr Kwasi Jonah, Head of the Department, commended the two lecturers for their outstanding contributions to the growth and development of the Department.

"As a Department, we shall always remember the positive contributions the two have made and hold them up as shining examples to our up and coming colleagues.

"Our hope and expectation is that out of the tremendous admiration all of us have for you, you will spring an inspiration for our younger generation of political scientists," Dr Jonah said. Dr Jonah said Professor Aryee managed to combine heavy teaching load and thesis supervision responsibilities with the highly demanding administrative duties associated with the headship of the Department and deanship of the Faculty of Social Studies which did not impede his prolific intellectual output. "With Professor Aryee's departure, one of the areas in which the department would suffer a major setback is in the teaching of Public Administration. Over the years, he has made Public Administration one of the strong pillars of the Department of Political Science," he said.

Dr. Jonah said the upcoming Master of Public Affairs Sandwich programme would also suffer a substantial weakening since it was designed by Professor Aryee and was expected to be the coordinator.

On Professor Boafo-Arthur, Dr. Jonah said under his eight-year leadership at the Department, it experienced an unprecedented intellectual and infrastructural development which included the provision of computers, air conditioners, tiled floors, cabinets and rapid expansion in student numbers and size of faculty.

"Professor Boafo-Arthur would continue to be with us and help us in every way possible as if he never left for LECIA.

"His contribution to teaching and research functions of the Department has been weighty so it would have been a double jeopardy for the department if he had also left for another country," Dr. Jonah said. Professor Aryee advised young people in the academia to allow themselves to be mentored by their senior colleagues and emulate their excellent qualities.

"In academic work you need to be on good terms with your superiors, respect them and work hard although there would be setbacks, you need to have focus and tenacity of purpose to succeed.

"Young lecturers must be allowed to grade scripts so that their senior colleagues would exercise oversight responsibility," he said. Professor Boafo-Arthur called on young lecturers to work hard and commended the staff and students of the Department for their collaboration during his tenure as lecturer and Head of the Department. Professor Aryee was engaged as a lecturer in 1984, rose to become a senior lecturer in 1991, Associate Professor in 1995 and Professor in 1997. Between 1995 and 2000, he served as the Head of the Political Science Department and subsequently became the Dean of the Faculty of Social Studies until he relinquished that position in July this year. Professor Boafo-Arthur joined the Department of Political Science as a lecturer in 1983 and rose to become a senior lecturer in 1995, Associate Professor in 1999, Professor in 2004 and Head of the Department for eight years. 15 Dec. 09