Dr. Haja Ramatulai Wurie, Minister of Technical and Higher Education
By Mohamed M. Sesay
The Ministry of Technical and Higher Education dissolved the University of Sierra Leone’s court immediately following a dispute over appointing an acting vice-chancellor and principal.
The letter from the ministry notes that after the enactment of the Universities Act of 2021, the Court of the University of Sierra Leone (USL) failed to appoint a Pro-Vice Chancellor of the university as stipulated in Section 9 (1) of the said Act noting that, in the absence of the substantive Vice-Chancellor and Principal (VC&P), the Pro- Vice-Chancellor acts in his/her stead. Thus, on the appointment of the then substantive Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Prof. Foday Sahr, as Executive Director of the National Public Health Agency, the letter confirms that there was no Pro-vice Chancellor to act in his stead.
"Consequently, you were duly consulted by the Minister of Technical and Higher Education about the implications of the absence of a Pro-Vice-Chancellor and the urgent need to replace the erstwhile Vice-Chancellor and Principal. You agreed with the minister to take appropriate action and keep you posted. Based on the consultation, the ministry appointed Prof. Lawrence Kamara to fill the void and initiate action to recruit and cause the appointment of a substantive Vice-Chancellor and Principal for USL in accordance with Section 8 subsections (1) (2) and (3) of the Universities Act of 2021’’, the letter indicates.
The Letter also expresses that the Ministry is concerned that the Court did not allow the appointed Acting Vice-Chancellor and Principal to function. Instead, the Court presided over appointing a parallel Acting VC&P contrary to the agreement with the minister. The letter indicates that several attempts had been made by the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education and recently, the Parliamentary Oversight Committee on Technical and Higher Education to address the seeming impasse under review but to no avail.
‘You may also wish to note that the calendar of events submitted to the ministry by the University Administration contained, among other events, the congregation ceremony of students scheduled to graduate at the end of the 2022/23 academic year. As planned, the ceremony was to be conducted during the third week of December 2023. Under your watch, the USL administration did not hold the ceremony because the Academic Staff Associations of the various public higher education institutions had issued an industrial strike notice with respect to their conditions of service. You are aware that the MTHE reached a negotiated settlement with the academic staff associations in time for the congregation to be conducted", the letter states.
In this circumstance, the letter continues that the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education (MTHE) appealed to the USL Administration to respect their calendar and conduct the ceremony because of the inherent implications for graduating students. Strangely, the USL Administration did not countenance the appeals because the Court of the USL had taken a decision to defer the congregation ceremony to April 2024 and insisted that the ‘decision of the Court is sacrosanct’ and, therefore, could not negotiate any other date prior April 2024, While the Ministry further stated that the Court’s sacrosanctity on the issue persists to date and that it is currently appealing to the graduands of the USL for the 2022/23 academic year to be patient.
"Furthermore, again under your watch, the USL Administration deliberately levied high non-tuition fees (other charges) on students without recourse to the supervising ministry and/or the expressed approval by the USL Court. "
The letter calls on the University Court to note that given the foregoing, the catalog of other unmentioned issues, and in consultation with the Tertiary Education Commission, the Government of Sierra Leone, through the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education, has deemed it expedient to dissolve the Court of the University of Sierra Leone with immediate effect. The letter equally indicates that the Ministry is constrained to inform the Chancellor that all decisions taken by the Court post appointment of the Acting Vice Chancellor and Principal (Prof. Lawrence Kamara) are null and void. The letter intimates that an Interim Management Committee will be installed soon to manage the transition. Please accept the compliments of the supervising Ministry of Technical and Higher Education", the Ministry reiterated.
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