The management of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has suspended the Junior Common Room (JCR) System of hall management by students in all the halls of the university starting from the 2023/2024 academic year.
In a statement issued, the ban is as a result of the recent clash between students of the University Hall (Katanga) and Unity Hall (Continental), and it means that all the halls in the KNUST will not have student leadership.
It added that the Hall Masters and the Hall Council of the various halls will take over the day-to-day management of them, which was previously done by elected student leaders.
“With effect from the 2023/2024 Academic Year, the Junior Common Room (JCR) System of Hal Management by students is abolished. This means there would be no student elections for hall executives. The existing governance structure, comprising Hall Councils, Hall Masters and Senior Tutors, would continue to operate in the management of the affairs of the Hails.
“In addition, Hall Follows will be appointed and assigned to floors/blocks of the Hals to exercise direct supervision over matters affecting students. In the meantime, Hall Week and SRC Week Celebrations have been suspended indefinitely,” parts of the statement read.
The statement added: “Any student who participates in the organisation of 'morale and/or procession shall be summarily dismissed."
On August 15, 2022, the university again made the wrong headlines after a series of rape allegations by students when its students who reside in the University Hall (Katanga) and Unity Hall (Continental) clashed.
The clash resulted in at least 11 students sustaining various injuries, with properties, including 11 vehicles, being vandalised.
According to a student at the university who spoke to GhanaWeb on condition of anonymity, the residents of the Katanga Hall deliberately attacked students of Conti while they were embarking on a procession.
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KNUST SRC Week, Hall Week celebration suspended