Teacher trainees clash with Agogo college authority

About 250 third year students of the Agogo Presbyterian College of Education at Agogo in the Asante Akyem North district have been denied entry into campus since Monday when school re-opened.

The authorities of the College at the instance of the College Council have asked the students to sign a bond of good behavior and paid fees before they are allowed in.
The entire student body has been served with bond forms to be filled and signed by students to be of good behavior for allegedly participating in "an unwarranted demonstration" without permission against the authorities of the College on June 17, 2016.

According to a circular headed Bond of Good behavior dated August 25, 2016 and signed by Mr. Eric KM Dradu, College Council Secretary, the said demonstration on June 17 was in breach of the Harmonized Statutes for Colleges of Education Schedule D1, Subsection 4 (a), (b), (c) and (d) namely; (a) To be absent from Campus, without permission or reasonable excuse;
(b), To be absent from lectures and other prescribed assignments without permission or reasonable excuse; (c) To be insubordinate to superiors; and (d) To indulge in any anti-social activities while in residence or outside Campus which tend to bring the College into disrepute.
Students who sign the bond duly witnessed by parents and guardians would be liable to summarily dismissal when they ever attempt or get involved in any act of misconduct.
The students who are in for an orientation towards their out programme {teaching practice} have refused to sign the bond.
They are demanding explanation for the purported disciplinary action by the authorities which the students think is suspicious because they have done no wrong as the demonstration was a peaceful one.
The said demonstration was provoked by the sudden release of one Mr. Somuah Addai, a Mathematics tutor by the Principal of the College from the school and it was to halt any further arbitrarily dismissal of teachers by the Principal.
Most of the students have complained about the high fees compared to other Colleges of education. The students are paying about GHc1,300.00 including examination fee of GHc250.00, registration, academic and professional training and feeding fees, GHc747.000 fees, SRC dues of GHC150.00, hall dues of GHc150.00 per student even though they have to pay GHc57.00 as residential fees for the out programme at a time their counterparts at St. Louis College of Education are paying GHc847.00.
As a result, the students have resolved not to sign a purported bond and have decided to report to campus on Friday in defiance of the order by college authorities. .

The position of the students is explained in the fact that notwithstanding the strike action by their teachers they are prepared to come to school except that they are being unjustifiably prevented.
Meanwhile, the students have o appealed to the Ministry of Education to intervene to resolve the impasse before it affects academic work.

A section of the students have also called for a probe of the financial administration of the Principal regarding payment of feeding fees.
They complain that they are compelled to pay feeding fees when the government delays in the release of funds but the students are not reimbursed when the funds are eventually released by the government thus over burdening them with finances.