The Public Accounts Committee of parliament (PAC) has advised the Tamale Technical University (TaTU) to take the necessary steps to secure all its land within its catchment area.
PAC advice follows recommendation from the Auditor general 2021 report which indicates that the school lands are not secure with some being encroached upon.
The school according to the report has a total land of 31.45 acres located at Kpene, Demali and Dungu-Kukou with an estimated value of 19.5million cedis. Management, the report indicated the registration process since 2016 but the process got truncated.
The report found out that there was no fence wall around the lands except the two acres at Dungu-Kukou. The report recommended that management take steps to ensure all the school lands are secured.
The committee gave the advice during its week-long seating in Tamale to examined 2022 auditor general report for technical universities and colleges of education from Northern, Upper West and Upper East regions.
The audit further indicated that 8.74 acres of land at Demali has been encroached by private developers. Responding to the question, the Director of works at TaTU, Mr Abdallah Adam explained that a kpene land contract has been drafted to award it for the cadastral plan for registration.
The land, he explained, was donated to TaTU to construct its new campus and a contractor has been appointed by the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund to inspect the land and prepare design for the new campus.
He also explained that a dispute ensued between two chiefs on the Demali land, but the two chiefs have since resolved the issue and the school lawyer has also written to recalcitrant private developers encroaching on the land to stop work.
Vice Chancellor of TaTU, Professor Abass Braimah told the committee that management have been following the issue at the lands commission for some time now and hope to secure it soon.
The report also notice that TaTu management failed to retrieve payment from two lecturers, Susana Antwi-Bosako and Dr Antwi Kwaku in lieu of notice because per the role of the university, they were required to serve three-months’ notice which they failed.
In total, the two lecturers were supposed to pay 49,557 cedis back to the university.
But the VC said after the audit observations, letters were sent to them, but their lawyers replied to disputing payment with explanations that, after they tendered in their resignation letters, it was towards the end of the academic year, and they continued to render services to TaTU because some students were assigned to them for their project work.
On staff accommodation, the audit report found out that TaTU management has difficulty in implementing its own housing policy. Management and its housing committee approved fees for a two-bedroom house at 150 cedis and three bedroom 200 cedis a month and yet occupants continue to 30 cedis and 50 cedis respectively a month.
As a result, 37 occupants’ own arrears to the tune of 20,000 cedis. Director finance Mr Alhassan Abdul Razak revealed that an amount of 19, 760 have been recovered leaving the balance of 300 which the auditors confirmed at the committee’s seating.
The government subvention to the school in 2021 was 37.5million but the school ended the year by spending 40.49 million on compensation. Director finance says the school has casual staff they budget for.
TaTU according to financial performance for 2021, the indicated surplus 1.1million and were commended by the committee. The Tamale Technical
Vice Chancellor Professor Abass Braimah VC, Mr Alhassan Abdul Razak -director finance, Mr Bashiru Imoro Ibn Saeed Pro-CV, Mr Abdallah Adam Director works and Mr Alhassan Mohammed Kamal-Deen -Director of audit appeared before the committee.