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Anger has taken the better part of the members of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), with the former re-echoing its caution to government to rescind its decision to migrate lecturers unto the Integrated Personnel Payroll Database 2 (IPPD2).

The warning was also against the sought for financial clearance from government before the various universities could recruit lecturers, saying it defeats the autonomous nature of universities.

The association not long ago held a news conference in Accra and gave government March ending ultimatum to halt it intensions.

Government, after the fiat, issued financial clearance for University of Education, Winneba to be able to recruit 46 lecturers and also insulated University of Ghana, Legon from the IPPD2 salary migration after evaluating and finding its payment system robust.

However, in an exclusive interview with the New Crusading GUIDE, Dr. Harry L. Agbanu, President of UTAG insisted that the immunity of salary migration should be extended to all universities and not only University of Ghana.

“Whatever made University of Ghana pass the evaluation test could be recommended to the other universities to free them too from the salary migration policy”, he stated.

He noted that Ghanaian Universities with it high rankings in the world has attracted foreign students from different countries and thus a direct control from government would slow things and decrease their standing to make them unattractive.

He explained that migrating universities onto the IPPD2 meant they could not have the free hand to recruit lecturers to run new programs and sustain the old ones, a situation that could make the universities stand still and collapse them eventually.

According to him, there would be no need for University Councils and Vice Chancellors if the policies are implemented because their jobs would be what government would execute.

Already, he said, the financial clearance from Government before a university could recruit lecturers has had grave consequences on the universities staff strength, saying lecturers have died, resigned, incapacitated, retired and needed to be replaced.

Dr. Agbanu rather supported government to (if the need be) implement the monitor and advise policy known as interface, to check malfeasances in the universities rather than trying to take over the jobs of University Council and Vice Chancellors.

Comparing staff strength to the number of students, Dr. Samuel Bekoe, the immediate past National President of UTAG pointed out that UEW alone needed not less than 300 lecturers, describing the clearance given for the recruitment of 46 lecturers as  woefully inadequate.

Granting only 15 percent of the request of a University is like a drop of water in a hot frying pan, he said, adding that some department nearly collapsed but for the engagement of retirees and part timers by the University Council.

Aside restraining the powers of the council, Mr. Bekoe, also the President of UTAG in UEW believes what the universities would impact on students would be biased knowledge should government continue with its suggested policies.

Citing the current situation of having to seek for financial clearance as an example, the UEW UTAG President questioned where his institution would get money to pay part timers and retirees when almost all Internal Generated Funds (IGF) were being paid to government chest.

He called for the abolishment of sought for financial clearance and the migration of salaries unto the IPPD2 but endorsed the interface system though he saw it as an intrusion on the affairs of the University.

UTAG has scheduled a National Executive Meeting for Wednesday 31st March, this year, ostensibly to discuss the issue about the Salary migration, ban on recruitment and the intension of substitution the Book and Research Allowance for the already cabinet approved Research Fund.