Monrovia – Since its formal opening in August 1978, the William V. S. Tubman University (TU) has operated on a set of professional standards: faculty and staff recruitments, integrity and academic excellence among others.
Report by Danesius Marteh, [email protected]
The recent dismissal of Roland T. Barnes, Associate Vice President for facilities and campus operations following reports that he allegedly received a US$60,000 kickback from GBECCO, which was awarded a contract to renovate the engineering building, speaks volumes about goes on at TU.
A faculty at TU is expected to have at least a master’s degree while prospective students must complete several procedures, including a successful pass in the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) exams, transfer requirements and a successful pass in the placement exams.
Quantity versus quality
But Dr. Edward Lama Wonkeryor, who became TU second President on July 1, 2016, has opted for quantity over quality.
He has a background in journalism and academia and replaced Dr. Elizabeth Davis-Russell, who had run the university since 2009.
Under Dr. Wonkeryor, several students have reportedly been admitted outside of the laid-down admission processes. Prominent among them are his niece, who lives with him on campus and the ‘step-daughter’ of associate Vice President for academic support serVices, Dr. Dee Nyamieh Walker, who supervises the admissions office.
The students were admitted and issued identification numbers for academic year 2016/2017.
When this issue was raised by some students and staff, acting admissions director Groba Williams reportedly told them that the “mandate came from the top” and was intended to increase the students to justify for more funding.
But in an exclusive interview, Dr. Wonkeryor said a condition was created to allow high school graduates, who didn’t successfully pass WAEC exams or the entrance exams, to enroll under a provisional arrangement.
“Similarly with my niece that everyone is talking about, she is a graduate of a very competent high school in Nimba County. She took the West African Examinations Council exams and she has to do one or two re-sitter [tests]. I brought her to the university.
“The fundamental question is do you want me to allow her to be sitting home, cooking and washing for me without going to university.
And there are other students in her category in other parts of the geo-political region of this great country.
“So I said, Mr. Associate Vice President for Admissions, I would like for you to revisit that policy to see if you people can allow students, like my niece in that category, for them to be matriculated on conditions.
They must take the university’s exams and if they pass then you can allow them to matriculate. [They are] allowed to take or audit courses and that’s what my niece is doing.
“She is not a full-fledged students but she takes assignments, quizzes and everything. Her grades are kept.
If she passes the entrance exams, which she just took and completes her West African Examinations Council exams, the university can matriculate her. And that is applicable to other students. And we call that provisional admission and I think this is a great policy,” he said.
For his part, Dr. Walker said his step-daughter, Nyandii Lahai, who graduated from AME Zion High School about four years ago, met all requirements.
“My daughter went through the regular process for admissions. She is a high school graduate. She got a WAEC [certificate]; she took the placement test and passed and she matriculated,” he explained.
Salary increment
With just two months in office of a 12-month probationary period, Dr. Wonkeryor justified the board of trustees’ decision to increase his salary from US$7,800 to US$10,000.
He said he was being underpaid despite his very extraordinary qualification.
“I have written 12 books. I have taught at a respectable university [Temple University] for 12 consecutive years. I have also served as Vice President and provost for Cuttington University before this position.
“Besides that, I worked in the Liberian government in the 1980s as manager for the Liberia Broadcasting System. It means that I am qualified enough to be compensated well for my qualification standard. Moreover, if you compared my salary with my peers at other universities, I was underpaid.
“So the question, which begs answer, is why pays Dr. Wonkeryor US$7,800 when the outgoing President was earning US$10,500 or US$10,600 plus a car and residence assigned to her and we are both PHD holders and qualified? Isn’t that a semblance of discrimination?
Isn’t that a semblance of marginalization? Let’s be realistic because this is a democratic society,” he stressed.
Controversial search for VPA
Some staffers of TU, who spoke to this reporter anonymously, accused Dr. Wonkeryor of “unilaterally” recruiting Dr. Walker to take over as Vice President for administration.
But Wonkeryor said a search committee was appointed with the adVice and consent of his cabinet.
Others appointed on the committee, according to him, include Vice President for academic affairs, Dr. Elizabeth Q. Enanoria-Carbajosa; Vice President for students’ affairs, Rev. Dr. Anthony G. Dioh; assistant Vice President for human resource, Aryee Kotatee Williams, Jr. and faulty senate President, Professor Isaac George.
“Those are all qualified Liberians. So how could some say Dr. Wonkeryor is blatantly and exoterically attempting to appoint or select Dr. Walker?
When we did this, the search committee sent out a call for application to all Liberians but I limited the search to only be internal.
“The reason why I wanted this to be internal is that within the confines of the university are qualified Liberians.”
“And my goal is to Liberianize top positions at the university. We have respectable numbers of competent international scholars in our university, who are located in top positions at our university.
“But my counterargument is while I appreciate their holistic contribution to our educational project, I think qualified Liberians have that enviable right to contribute towards formulating and implementing academic policies that would positively affect Liberians in general.
It is based on these conditions that I limited the search to Liberians because we have so many PHDs,” he added.
Since being rebranded in 2009, TU has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, ranging from a generator scandal and kickbacks to salary bonanza and controversial appointment.
However, Dr. Wonkeryor paid tribute to Dr. Russell, describing her as one of the brilliant and effective administrators he has ever seen and vowed to judiciously implement her five-year and 10-year plans, including oil palm planting for extra finances, graduate programs in the sciences and additional housing units for faculty among others.