The Coalition for Accountable Leadership (COFAL-KNUST), an anti-corruption and policy analist group at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) is calling on student leaders to publish their budget statements for the entire academic year for public scruitiny before they start spending.
This was contained in a press release the group sent to myJCR.com. Below is the full press release.
A PRESS STATEMENT BY THE COALITION FOR ACCOUNTABLE LEADERSHIP TO THE SRC AND ALL JCR’S ON THE NEED TO PUBLISH A COMPREHENSIVE BUDGET FOR THE 2014/2015 ACADEMIC YEAR
With the greatest of respect, the entire team at COFAL-KNUST wishes to congratulate the SRC and all JCR’s on their election and nominations into office. This congratulation is not without reservations as it can be noticed that COFAL-KNUST which was then AFAL-KNUST went into some legal tussles so as to set things right. Some were granted others were not and a review is an idea worth considering.
We would also like to congratulate all freshmen on their admission into KNUST which is by far one of the best universities in Ghana, Africa and the world at large. It is not a mistake that you found yourselves here (KNUST) but it was God’s calling as many applied but few were chosen.
Once again, we would like to reinstate our perpetual commitment to the promotion of transparency, probity and accountability as well as the protection of the interest of students.
The rationale of this statement is to raise the consciousness of student leaders on the need to publish their budget statements for the entire academic year (2014/2015) for public scrutiny before they start spending. In other words, we humbly request that the SRC and all JCR’S should tell us what our monies which we paid as dues would be used for.
In a descriptive and exploratory survey conducted to this respect by COFAL-KNUST, it was revealed that the SRC and all JCR’S for the past three years have never published a composite budget of their planned expenditure for the entire academic year. This trend is nerve-racking and a major limitation to transparency, honesty, probity and accountability which are some key tenants of good governance.
It is our fervent believe that when these comprehensive budget statements are put in the public domain, they would carefully scrutinize them and elicit irrelevant projects as well as add inputs that would enhance greater efficiency. It would also ultimately lead to greater participation as the budget would invariably reflect the views of the people.
Moreover, the published budgets would be the basis to assess the performance of respective student leaders. The respective student leaders would be judged according to what they set out to do and what they have actually accomplished.
It would also enhance transparency because students would be made aware of what their monies which they pay as dues would be used for. The call for the publishing of the budget has not only come in the right time but it is also constitutional as all the constitutions clearly state that budgets should be published.
In conclusion, it is our greatest hope and prayer that our humble request for the publishing of the comprehensive budgets would be implemented to the latter by the SRC and all JCR’s (duty bearers) so as to further improve the trust of the student body on student leaders as well as reduce corruption, strengthen good practices and ensure the realization of the ultimate goal of sustained progress. It must be however added that it would be very regrettable to drag student leaders to court so as to ensure the enforcement of this mostly neglected but constitutional requirement.
Signed.
Alagskomah Eugene Savio (President, COFAL-KNUST)
Contact: 0501378437
Boakye Dankwah (General Secretary, COFAL-KNUST)
Contact: 0246312880
