The two University of Guyana (UG) unions last evening condemned the reversal of an earlier decision by the UG council to send Vice Chancellor Professor Ivelaw Griffith on standard end-of-contract leave from tomorrow.
In a press release, the two unions said that the UG council, in what they said was a questionable round-robin decision has agreed that Griffith be paid in lieu of leave and he would effectively remain on the job. The unions charged that the cash-strapped university can ill-afford this course of action.
The University of Guyana Senior Staff Association and the University of Guyana Workers’ Union in the release said that this development is unbelievable while noting that the Turkeyen campus is a potential “major public health crisis” given the absence of running water. It added that staff and students have been denied basis amenities because of the unavailability of money.
According to the release, UG Pro-Chancel-lor Major-General (Ret’d) Joseph Singh yesterday said that a Council decision to send Griffith on end-of-contract leave had been reversed and that the Vice Chancellor would be paid in lieu of leave.
The basis for the direction, the release said was the result of a round-robin vote of the sixteen eligible members of Council. The result of the vote is still being disputed. Up to press time there was no word from UG on the decision in relation to Griffith who is seeking a renewal of his contract. Observers say that his being allowed to stay on could taint the process to find the best candidate.
According to the release from the unions yesterday, some Council members have stated that they disagree with both the process and the purported outcome, but the Pro Chancellor nonetheless gave the direction to the Registrar and Secretary to the Council, Dr Nigel Gravesande.
“The University of Guyana Unions are appalled at what has transpired over the last week with regard to the functioning of Council. It is clear that we have now arrived at a point where Council (or at least part of Council) appears to be acting according to dictates of the Vice Chancellor,” the release said, before adding that a letter from the Vice Chancellor to the Pro-Chancellor did not ask that Council reconsider its decision but rather sought to inform Council that he would not be proceeding on leave and he would prefer to be paid for his leave.
The unions made it clear in their release that that this amounted to the Vice Chancellor instructing Council.
The release said that given that the Council is charged under the University of Guyana Act with responsibility for the institution, and it is supposed to ensure the well-being of staff and students, this “situation represents a complete abdication by the Council of its responsibilities.”
Noting that the institution’s budget was passed on April 15th 2019, it was explained that the Council was informed by way of correspondence from the Academic Board of how stretched the budget was with regard to the work of the Faculties, and how academic heads feared that the quality of education offered by the University would be affected.
Over the last semester, the university has been faced with several challenges which are seemingly linked to a lack of financial resources.
Unpaid bills
According to the press release, large sectors of the University have been without internet access for several days allegedly because of unpaid bills, a situation which affected the work of Faculties. Further, due to the difficulties in effecting repairs, staff have had to work in extremely hot conditions because of broken air-conditioning, and washrooms having to be closed because of the inability to purchase required parts. Also there is a shortage of items such as toilet paper, cleaning supplies, and printer ink and staff were told that they cannot be paid in lieu of leave because the University cannot afford it.
Further, it was explained that staff and students of the University have been coping with water shortages at the Turkeyen Campus since last semester, with the University administration blaming the Guyana Water Inc. and drought for the problems. According to the release, last week Faculties had to close and send their staff home because there was no water available and a similar situation existed in the facilities used by students. The University’s staff, it was explained have been battling to fetch water to maintain basic cleanliness.
“Given these circumstances, it is incomprehensible that the Pro-Chancellor voted along with six other members of Council to pay what will most likely amount to millions of dollars to the Vice-Chancellor,” the release said adding that there is no question of the institution being left leaderless as there are three Deputy Vice-Chancellors.
It was pointed out that the round-robin process and its outcome are “highly suspect” for at least two reasons. The first being that the Pro-Chancellor refused to provide to members of Council requested information about the cost of paying the Vice Chancellor and it was only when the round robin was declared over that he then requested that the Registrar provide the information.
“Those Council members who voted for the Vice Chancellor to be paid voted in ignorance of what it would cost the University,” the release said.
The second issue, the release said is that the Pro-Chancellor also refused to respond to expressed concerns from six members of Council about the suitability and validity of the round-robin process. “He ignored a direct call for him to convene a meeting of Council so that the Vice-Chancellor’s demand could be discussed appropriately,” the release said adding that members of Council pointed out that the decision for the Vice Chancellor to proceed on leave had been taken at a properly convened meeting of Council, and that adequate notice had been given to him that he would have to proceed on leave.
‘We are extremely disappointed with what has transpired at Council over the last few weeks. We had been asked to give Council the opportunity to act as impartial arbiter and to manage the situation inside the University. It is now clear that Council under the leadership and guidance of the Pro-Chancellor cannot fulfil that role, and the Council has become dysfunctional, the release said.
Given yesterday’s developments, the unions demanded that the Council and the administration act in the interest of the institution. “If they fail to do so, we will take strong and decisive action,” the release warned.
Griffith and the unions have been at odds on a variety of issues.
