Accra: Staff of the Nurses Training College (NTC), Ho, staged a peaceful demonstration on Tuesday to protest the continued occupation of some of the College's infrastructure by the University of Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) at Dave, a suburb in the Municipality. Mr James Awudi, the Convener of the demonstration, stated that the protest aimed to bring public attention to a long-standing issue affecting the institution and its staff's welfare for several years.
According to Ghana News Agency, Mr Awudi explained during a media briefing that some properties of the Nurses Training College were temporarily handed over to UHAS in 2012 by the late President, Prof. John Evans Atta Mills, to serve as incubator facilities when the university was newly established. He mentioned that the arrangement was for the facilities to be returned to the College once UHAS moved to its permanent campus. However, more than a decade later, the properties have not been handed back.
The facilities in question were originally constructed to support the College's operations and provide accommodation and teaching space for staff and students. Mr Awudi listed the affected facilities, which include staff flats converted into student hostels by UHAS, lecture halls, three-bedroom self-contained bungalows meant for the principal, staff offices, and the College library.
Mr Awudi noted that the staff had pursued several peaceful and diplomatic channels over the years, including letters and petitions to relevant authorities, but had not received a satisfactory response. He highlighted that while the rightful owners struggle to accommodate staff and secure lecture halls for students, UHAS has converted the facilities into hostels, generating Internally Generated Funds from them. This situation has created significant accommodation challenges and affected teaching and learning at the college.
Emphasizing the peaceful intent of the demonstration, Mr Awudi said it was not meant to create hostility but to demand fairness and justice. He called on the Government of Ghana, the Volta Regional Minister, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education, and other relevant authorities to intervene to ensure the properties are returned to the Nurses Training College. He also appealed to UHAS leadership to engage with the college in good faith to resolve the issue amicably.
Madam Ruth Xorladem Ayitteh, the Director of Works and Physical Development at UHAS, received the petition from the demonstrators and assured them that the concerns would be forwarded to the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Health and Allied Sciences for further action. She stated that the petition would be submitted to the Vice-Chancellor and the university council, promising that the staff would hear from them in due course.
The demonstration follows a similar protest in June 2025, when students of the School of Hygiene in Ho demonstrated against UHAS, demanding the release of a facility at the university's Dave Campus, which they claimed belonged to their institution and was needed to address infrastructure shortages and support accreditation requirements.