A five- year Strategic Plan for the University of Cape Coast,UCC, has been launched at a ceremony at the School of Medical Sciences (SMS) Auditorium.

The current  Strategic Plan, also called Third Plan, builds on the two previous Strategic Plans  ( 2003-2008, 2012- 2017) and seeks to continue with aspects of the previous plan which could not be achieved but were still relevant and the introduction of new initiatives. It also takes cognizance of the experiences and developments in the University, in the country and in the world over the last decade.

The five- year Strategic Plan, spanning 2018 to 2022,  has been developed at a time that the country is taking a critical look at the role of higher education in national development within the context of the Agenda 2057 : the 40-year Long-Term National Development Plan. At the International level, the Third Plan looks basically at ranking based on research output of faculty and staff, as well as visibility in virtual space as the basis for assessing institutions.

The Chairman of the University Governing Council, Mrs. Nancy Thompson, who launched the Corporate Strategic Plan, stated that the Council had thoroughly perused the Strategic Plan and pointed out that the nine key strategic thrusts enshrined in the Plan were clear indication of the "University's preparedness to rethink and reposition itself to take advantages of the opportunities and mitigate threats that lie ahead in the next five years." She announced that all resources needed to make the Plans a reality had been provided.

Mrs. Thompson told staff of the University that the Strategic Plans were neither mere documents nor theories, stressing that " They are specific goals with timeliness that need to be achieved".  She, therefore, called on all stakeholders in the University to work in tandem towards the achievement of the goals of the Strategic Plan. "It's not about the Vice-Chancellor, Registrar or Provosts. Everybody at whatever level he/she may be must put their shoulders to the wheel," she advised. Mrs. Thompson expressed profound appreciation to the 24- member Corporate Strategic Plan Committe, chaired by Prof. Kofi Awusabo-Asare, for their efforts,  dedication and hard work.

In his welcome address, the Vice- Chancellor, Prof. Joseph Ghartey Ampiah,  was of the firm belief  that the new Corporate Strategic Plan would position the University strategically to the changes taking place in its operational environment. "The Strategic Plan will help us to apply our resources and strengths  to exploit the available opportunities to confront any threats that may face us towards achieving our mission, " he stated.

The Vice-chancellor implored staff of the University to work assiduously to achieve the goals of the Corporate Strategic Plan, to put the University on a giant pedestal. Prof Ampiah was full of praise for the members of the committee for a good work done. " ...Please permit me to use this opportunity to thank Prof. Kofi Awusabo-Asare and his team for the good work done. We are grateful to the team, "he said.

As part of the launch, a member of the Committee, Prof. Samuel Annim, took the gathering through the highlights of the Strategic Plan.  Sax Reddick, a trumpeter and student of UCC, treated the audience to melodious instrumental tunes.

Distance Students Association of Ghana (DESAG) has held its Inter-Centre sports games to hunt for talented sports men and women across  the 10 regions of Ghana.

The games, under the theme: "Strengthening DESAG unity through sports," was also to increase cohesion among the various centres.

The regional centres, with the exception of Volta, Ashanti and Western regions which had their games last month (April), undertook sporting events such as football, tennis, basketball, volleyball, as well as indoor games. The regional Inter-Center sports competition is precursor to the regional zonal games, which has been categorised into three zones, namely: Southern, Middle and Northern.

Speaking to reporters during a tour of some centers, the Central Regional Sports Organiser, Mr. Abdul Rahman Willie, said the competition would help DESAG to identify new sports talents, who have qualities to represent their respective regions in the zonal competition, which will be held in July 2  this year at the University of Ghana-Legon.  He said those who would be selected would be groomed and provided with the necessary support to participate in the national DESAG games, which will come off in the Volta region in August 2018.

Mr. Willie said the Central region was grouped into zone A and B, comprising Swedru, Apam, Swesbu and Kasoa study centers for Zone A, while Zone B was made up of Asikuma, UCC, Assin Foso, Twifo Praso and Dunkwa-on-Offin study centres. He expressed concern about the low patronage, but, however, attributed it to the lack of transportation and probably due to the busy schedules of members, who are largely workers.

The National President of DESAG, Mr. George Amenyo, who toured the Central Regional zonal centres of the competition, expressed satisfaction with the organisation of the exercise. He was, however, worried about the lack of women’s participation in the games and gave an assurance that measures would be instituted to address it.

Mr. Amenyo indicated that the games would help the DESAG to churn out many good sportsmen and women, to win laurels for University of Cape Coast in local and international competitions. He appealed to sports men and women to train harder than before to achieve more success in their career.

He further appealed to corporate bodies and public-spirited individuals to assist in sponsoring the National DESAG Sports Competition. He encouraged members to use their leisure period to develop their God-given talents.

Mr. Amenyo was accompanied on the monitoring tour by the Central Regional President, Mr. Osei Derrick Boadu and Abukari Issaka, the Central Regional Financial Secretary.

The Centre for National Culture, Cape Coast in collaboration with the Department of Music and Dance, UCC, has honoured three personalities for promoting Fante music in Ghana and abroad.

The three personalities were Mr. Jonathan Anfoh, Mr. Moses Okyir and Mr. Kwamena Pra. These three personalities had not only promoted Fante Folk Music but had trained both students and lecturers from both local and international universities. Each of them received a citation, a bouquet of flowers and other undisclosed gifts in recognition of their meritorious creative works.

The function dubbed “Performance Arts Forum” was on the theme “The Role of Music in the Preservation and Promotion of the Socio-Cultural Values and Norms of Ghana”

Speaking at the awards ceremony, the Central Regional Minister, Kwamena Duncan, said music was a powerful tool that cuts across generations and cultures: to generations. “Music takes the full compensation of man thus the body, soul and mind,” he noted.

Mr. Duncan said in the Bible, music caused God to act to save Paul and Silas from prison. He also said there were several stories in the Bible and other religious books where music had been used to soften the hearts of chiefs.

The Central Regional Minister wondered whether the current generation of musicians were contributing towards promoting the rich Ghanaian culture as well as the socio-economic development of the nation. “Let’s use this platform to promote our cultural values so that we don’t lose track of our rich heritage,”

The Chairman for the function, Dr. Eric Debrah Otchere, of the Music Department, UCC said it was important to celebrate the awardees for the passion and energy they had invested in promoting Fante Folk Music. He criticized the criteria for other award ceremonies which selected musicians on the basis of ‘trivialities’ rather than the moral values and impact they’ve had on people.  He said commended the organizers for selecting the three awardees and stressed how he had personally benefitted from the knowledge, expertise and selflessness of the celebrated musicians. the organisers had observed them for a very long time adding that “I have personally benefitted in so many ways from their performances right from my student days and now as a lecturer”

The Director of CNC, Madam Christiana Carl Oparebea, said before the coming of the early missionaries, Fante people did not derive entertainment from books but developed their joy from imagination through oral knowledge including traditional folk music and dance. “For many it is believed that oral performance is the foundation of traditional Fante music, folktales, proverbs, incantations, teachings, myths, festivals among others” she noted.

Madam Oparebea  noted that in Africa, Folk Music played an important role in the lives of the people and it is always organised within certain contexts such as social, religious, political and economic. She said folk music was handed over from generation to generation. “For instance the Apatampa dance of the Fante people had been used to celebrate chastity among the youth especially teenagers,” she stated.  She said folk music remained as a tool for check and balances in society and it continued to be sung during all manner of traditional activities such as festivals, marriage rites, among others. It is used to honour and appreciate individuals who had contributed towards the overall development of the society.  She used the occasion to express gratitude to UCC for collaborating with CNC to honour these illustrious heroes for championing Fante Folk Music.

A former head of the Department of Theatre and Film Studies, Mr. Elolo Garbin, said music and dance played major roles in the lives of the people saying “If you want to know the people, study their dance. In Africa, he/she who dies without knowing the dance did not live”. He called on government to resource the Centre for National Culture in the various regions to help promote the Ghanaian culture. He advocated that staff of the Centre should be attached to the various embassies across the world to give the right education to foreigners who visit these places to learn the Ghanaian culture and traditions. He also called for the need to respect and give due recognition to the performing art.

The Head of the Department of Music and Dance, Dr. Florian Carl, said the Department was proud to partner CNC to honour these three legends who had contributed a great deal of their life to project Fante Folk Music.  He said the Department would continue to collaborate with stakeholders to promote indigenous music and dance as way of preserving the socio-cultural values and norms of Ghana.

The event witnessed some sterling performance from Awuley the Poet, Afrimuda Foundation, Twerammpon Traditionals, Obrempon Folkloric Dance Company, StreetMicMusic Foundation, Divine Brass Band, Ghana National School Choir and Wesley Girls Regimental Band. Also performing at the event were the award winners who treated the audience to danceable tunes from some of their compositions and  folk songs from some tribes in Ghana.

The worldwide attitude of ambivalence towards the creation and usage of insult is not double standards but rather a delicate balancing act for the attainment of psyco-social goals such as catharsis and entertainment on one hand and the moderation of the social conflicts caused by verbal and non-verbal insults.

This  statement was made by Dr. Moses Nii-Dortey and Dr. Edward Nanbigne of the University of Ghana when they jointly delivered a paper on the topic “Tabooing Insults: Why the Ambivalence?” at the Faculty of Arts Lecture Series held at the Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang Auditorium at Amissah-Arthur Language Centre.

The presentation examined both verbal and non-verbal, on the premise that societies the world over had adopted an ambivalent attitude towards the creation and use of insult. They noted that the ambivalence argument was grounded in the sheer preponderance of both institutionalised and informal usages of verbal and non-verbal insults, through the arts as well as the tabooing regimes of insults in the same societies.  They cited various festivals and other traditional rites where insults played major role to convey messages to caution those in leadership or society to desist from certain immoral practices. They mentioned “Apoo” festival of the people of Techiman in the Brong Ahafo Region, where a day was dedicated for the people to have the free will to insult the Paramount Chief without any punitive consequence. They also mentioned similar traditional rites among the Ga, Ewe and certain tribes in the three Northern Regions where insults were allowed.

They said there were enough evidence to show that societies the world over had some trend of ambivalence towards insult. In the context of their research, they said “ambivalence suggests a state of indecision or having either or both of contrary or similar values.”

They argued that “since neither the sanctioned uses of insult nor its tabooing do fully guarantee the attainment of the psycho-social necessities mentioned, the ambivalent attitude provides the needed framework for managing the creation and usage of insult as a necessary evil.  They further indicated that social navigation between sanctioned usages and tabooing of insults seem to be guided by the principles of ‘context’ and ‘intent’ of creation and usage of insult.