The management of the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ) has granted amnesty to students it asked to defer their courses for failing to register for the first semester of the 2020/2021 academic year.

They can now register and write their end of semester exams, however, they have five working days, starting Thursday, March 25, 2021 to complete the process.

The management of the Institute on Tuesday, March 23, 2021, issued a directive to all students who failed to pay their fees before the school's registration deadline to defer their courses.

Following the directive, a number of the affected students on Wednesday morning, March 24, 2021, besieged the campus of the Institute to demand a reversal of the directive.

Rector of the Ghana Institute of Journalism, Professor Kwamena Kwansah-Aidoo

Professor Kwamena Kwansah-Aidoo, Rector of the Ghana Institute of Journalism

The students on Wednesday morning went to the school for lectures but were met with locked gates at the two campuses of the institute located at Osu-Ringway and Dzorwulu. There were police personnel on the campuses to ensure law and order as the number of the affected students continued to increase at the gates.

The decision to lock the gates, according to the security personnel at the school, was “an order from above.”

But the management in a statement on Thursday afternoon, March 25, 2021, reacting to the appeals by the affected students, said “Management has listened to students' plea and accepted the apology rendered by students in good faith.”

The statement adds: “Leadership, therefore, grants a general amnesty to all students to complete their registration. Affected students should immediately produce their receipts at the Academic Affairs registry to complete registration processes.”

Below is the statement

GHANA INSTITUTE OF JOURNALISM

MEDIA RELEASE

GENERAL AMNESTY TO NON-REGISTERED STUDENTS

1. Management of the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ) has magnanimously granted all students who failed to register for the first semester of the 2020/2021 Academic Year an opportunity to register and write their end of semester exams instead of deferring their programmes. Management took this decision today, Wednesday 25 March 2021, based on a petition received from student leaders yesterday and the engagement with the said students who rendered an unqualified apology on behalf of demonstrating students who had issued threats, untruths and insults against Management.

2. We wish to place on record that Management had consistently engaged with students about payment of fees and registration since 2018, when students embarked on a demonstration on a similar issue. Since then, Management has continually served notices to students and extended registration deadlines with no penalty and provided opportunities for students with difficulties to utilise the institution’s processes in resolving their issues to enable them register.

3. Students embarked on a demonstration on Tuesday, 23 March 2021, without first notifying Management and discussing their difficulties and this was rather unfortunate.

4. Management has listened to students' plea and accepted the apology rendered by students in good faith. Leadership, therefore, grants a general amnesty to all students to complete their registration. Affected students should immediately produce their receipts at the Academic Affairs registry to complete registration processes. This opportunity to register shall expire in five (5) working days from today, on Thursday, 1 April 2021. Any other student who has a special case should contact the Registrar's office to avail themselves of any opportunities available for students with exceptional circumstances or difficulties. Accordingly, examinations scheduled to start on Monday, 29 March 2021, are rescheduled to Tuesday, 6 April 2021. The Academic Affairs registry shall release a new examination timetable in due course.

5. Management wishes to reiterate that it has at all times operated a humane and open-door policy by listening to students and granting many extensions. We are committed to working with students to achieve academic excellence in a spirit of cooperation, dialogue and mutual respect. Students should therefore not hesitate to approach Management with their issues and desist from resorting to demonstrations as a first resort without first engaging with leadership and without provocation.

As an institution with a vision and mission to achieve academic excellence comparable to any other global higher education institution, we shall continue to commit to international best practices in higher education administration. We, therefore, wish to remind students and all other stakeholders that GIJ is granting this amnesty to students for the last time. The Institute shall religiously enforce its registration policies at the beginning of the next academic year. Students who have difficulties in registering for financial or other reasons should approach the Institute and enter suitable arrangements in line with its policies to help build a culture of respect for academic integrity, policies and procedures and the overall sustainability of GIJ.

7. We entreat all affected students to take advantage of this amnesty and register.
Management wishes all students good luck in their examinations.