The Ho Technical University (HTU) has suspended its decision to rename the institution after the legendary Dr. Ephraim Amu, the Registrar of the university, Dr. Christopher Amehoe, has announced.
According to him, the institution has put the decision on hold because of the views expressed by the traditional authorities – Asogli State and other key stakeholders.
He therefore assured the chiefs and people of Asogli and all stakeholders that they should be calm, without harbouring fears.
Dr. Amehoe who also serves as the Secretary to HTU Governing Council explained that it is indeed true that the council had intended that the institution’s name be changed to Ephraim Amu Technical University in commemoration of the institution’s 50th anniversary. However, after consultations with key stakeholders and the chiefs, some reservations were echoed by the chiefs who are the custodians of the HTU land.
To this end, the process was suspended to allow for consensus building before taking a final decision. He pointed out that until there is consensus between the institution and the chiefs no such decision can be made.
He reiterated this when he spoke to an Accra-based media house, saying “there are no fresh moves to change the name of the institution that I am aware of…We have sought to meet with the chiefs for some time now but we are both not finding a suitable time to meet over the matter and that’s why that meeting is still pending”.
He expressed the institution’s readiness to meet the chiefs to settle all outstanding issues related to the renaming.
“But the chiefs are our fathers with whom we have enjoyed a very cordial relationship so if anything raises its ugly head, we’ll just have to meet with our fathers and settle it,” Dr. Amehoe stated.
This clarification by HTU came after the chiefs of Asogli had warned the institution against the renaming exercise.
The Asogli Traditional Council had recently expressed its misgivings with regard to the renaming of HTU after the renowned musicologist.
The chiefs said they have nothing against the national icon Dr. Ephraim Amu, yet they described as disrespectful and an affront to their authority if the Governing Council went ahead with the renaming.
Togbe Adzi Lakle Howusu XII, Warlord of the Asogli State in an address to the media in Ho this weekend warned that any attempt to rename the institution against their position would be met with stiff resistance.
From Fred Duodu, Ho (k.duodu@yahoo.com)