Sons and daughters of the proletariat class, conscious university students, philosophical ideologues, knowledge-seeking enthusiasts, proponents of egalitarianism, and fearless crusaders of social justice, academic freedom, and peace:
The erudite and all-powerful Vanguard Student Unification Party scrupulously extends deep-thinking greetings to you from the hotbed of intelligentsia and the citadel of socio-political consciousness. With this sense of revolutionary heirloom and heroism, you can reliably depend on SUP as your true voice, real hope, and refuge.
As mass plundering of public resources through surreptitious conspiracy and parochial gimmick remains prevalently ubiquitous, SUP remains fearlessly ceaseless in its advocacy to ambush micro-nationalists, imported bureaucrats, and fifth-columnists whose principal interest is to viciously endanger the collective destiny of the masses – the people’s children from the slums and hamlets.
The party is disappointingly appalled and utterly outraged by the latest decision of Dr. Ophelia Inez Weeks to purchase a US$68,000 jeep when over 20,000 students at the State-run University lack access to basic academic facilities such as internet, modern library, hi-tech science laboratory, computer lab, sanitized latrines, pipe-borne water, clinic, buses, research center, digitized registration system, improved infrastructure, etc.
Since Dr. Weeks became President of the University of Liberia in 2017, her primary interest has been to unremorsefully leech on the meager resources of UL by living in opulence and luxury at the expense of struggling and poor students. The President is careless about promoting students’ welfare through concrete development programs and pro-student initiatives.
While myriad of challenges continue to confront students on a daily basis at UL, all Dr. Weeks cares about is to get fat pay cheques, huge travel allowances, unrealistic per diems, ride luxurious vehicle, and sit in comfortable office. The continuous action of Dr. Weeks to pursue self-seeking ventures is not only mind-blogging, but inimical and ominous to the overall interest of the students.
Why will any University’s President think about buying a US$68,000 car when his/her students lack access to basic academic facilities such as internet, library, science lab, research center, computer lab, etc.? SUP is not surprise at Dr. Weeks’ action because the imperialistic symptom of the OLD ORDER (elitism and exclusivism through True Whigism) is yet to dissipate.
Besides other sources of revenue, the Government of Liberia has been allotting US$16.1 million annually to the University of Liberia for the past 3 years. SUP wonders where these resources have been going because students have rarely felt the real impact. Students’ welfare seems not to be a priority for Dr. Weeks’ administration.
Even though the University of Liberia is the second oldest institution of higher learning in West Africa next to Fourah Bay University in Sierra Leone, but it remains the least in terms of quality education. The learning environment at UL is not only poor, but hostile. Students are still standing in line to do registration and almost every process while Dr. Weeks spends US$68,000 to buy herself a car.
The promises made to students for increasing tuition from L$175 to L$400 in 2016 is yet too far from fulfillment. Where is the fiber-optic internet they promised? Where is the technological infrastructure they promised? Where is the infrastructural development? Where are the buses, clinic, recreation centers, etc.?
We are yet to see any state-of-the-art library, science laboratory, and computer lab even though students are paying these extra fees apart from the US$4 tuition per credit hour: Breakage – L$150, Insurance – L$100, Library – L$100, Reconstruction – L$100, Science Laboratory – L$100, Sport Fees – US$150, Student Activities – L$100, Student Support Service – L$150.
Amidst these realities, it will interest you to know that the vehicle previously used by Dr. Weeks is still in good shape and condition. While Dr. Weeks is using US$68,000 to buy a flashy car, it would only cost US$10,000 to give unlimited internet access to over 20,000 students at the University of Liberia according to our assessment done by SUP.
The inferior education students are receiving at UL is on purpose. Dr. Weeks and others don’t have their children here in Liberia. They careless about giving masses’ children quality education. Like we have always done, SUP will intervene very soon to deal with prevailing contradictions permeating the corridors of the University of Liberia. Comrades and compeers, you can be confident of our prompt intervention in your best interest.
In addendum, the party frowns on the action of the Vice President for Administration, Madam Weade Kobbah-Wureh, for continuously pursuing businesses that provide affordable services for poor and jobless students. SUP cautious VPA Kobbah-Wureh to refrain from any unorthodox action that will undermine the interest of students. We hope she is aware that over 95% of students who attend UL are unemployed and merely depend on transitory income.
VPA Kobbah-Wureh must understand that economically-challenged students are not compelled to purchase food from expensive restaurants that she has given unmerited leverage to at Fendall Campus for the purpose of overly profiteering at the expense of poor students. Such action amounts to Conflict of Interest and violates Section 1.3 Subsection 6 and Section 3.6 of the 2014 Code of Conduct Law. Madam Kobbah-Wureh must leave THE MARKETEERS OF THE MASSES alone.
SUP is concerned about the ongoing transportation crisis at the Fendall Campus of the University of Liberia. A good number of Commercial buses that usually commute our comrades from Red Light to Fendall Campus have been packed as a result of ongoing inspection exercises being carried out by the Ministry of Transport.
The movement of students is being severely hindered on a daily basis because those buses do not have insurance documents and some of them are not legally registered. SUP calls on UL administration to rapidly intervene in order to curtail this existing burden on students. The party decries the poor sanitary condition of latrines on Capitol Hill and Fendall Campuses. The students too deserve better! SUP is also admonishing the administration to improve learning facilities and ensure an environment of quality education.
We end in Latin by evoking the resilience and fortitude of our forebears “meditatione de iustitia sociali, academic libertatem et pacem” meaning in English “SUP remains restless in pursuit of social justice, academic freedom and peace.” Long Live SUP – Long Live Massescracy – Long Live the People’s Cause. The STRUGGLE for an equal and a just society remains unceasingly progressive. Done and issued on this 22nd Day of June A.D. 2018 by the mandate of the Politburo and Central Committee concomitantly.