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Latecomers to forfeit certificates for a year …UHAS Council Chair warns graduating students
Graduating students who turn up late for their congregation must have their degree ceremonies deferred for at least one year, Mr Justice Victor Jones M. Dotse, University of Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) Council Chairman, has said.
He insisted that under no circumstance should a person who has spent years in academia, pursuing a career degree should be late to an even as sacred as his or her congregation.
Mr Justice Dotse, who is a Supreme Court Judge, made the remarks at the 6th Congregation of UHAS at the main campus at Sokode-Lokoe, near Ho, on November 12, this year.
While the ceremony was ongoing, some graduating students were still trickling in.
The UHAS Council Chairman said that what was even more bizarre was how some students were still outside taking photographs while the ceremony was in progress.
He said that the conduct of those graduating students amounted to gross indiscipline and disrespect with impunity.
Mr Justice Dotse observed that discipline was declining rapidly among young people in the communities, “but UHAS will not tolerate any form of indiscipline from students.”
On other matters, he said that UHAS’ mission was to provide quality education, advance knowledge through scholarship and research to improve health and quality of life.
The university also seeks to be a pre-eminent health research educational institution dedicated to community service, and is doing quite well in that regard, Mr Justice Dotse added.
He said that UHAS had been making conscious efforts with regard to the research agenda and it was necessary that the government supported that activity with the necessary financial assistance to the university’s policies.
In that vein, the council chairman said the national research agenda must focus on clear implementation strategies that inured to the benefits of society.
“Public universities like UHAS must be supported timely with adequate research funds through national budgetary allocations.
“It is trite knowledge that most great nations develop through scientific research, thereby making them responsive and resilient in the face of social problems, and Ghana must learn from this global example,” he stressed.
From Alberto Mario Noretti, Sokode-Lokoe
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Swedru All Blacks back to winning ways, Roshan humble King Faisal
Sekondi Rospak FC made it eight wins in eight successive home games after three second-half goals from John Amoah, Joseph Ntow and Stephen Anthony Kofi. John Amoah opened the scoring in the 55th minute after a barren first half. Joseph Ntow added to the tally in the 56th minute before Stephen Anthony Kofi rounded things up in the 74th minute to give Rospak a 3-0 win over former Premier League side King Faisal.
Elsewhere at Swedru – leaders Swedru All Blacks humbled PAC Academy in an emphatic 2-0 win. Zayat Bubakari scored first for Swedru All Blacks in the 27th minute before Rudolf Junior Nana Kwasi Mensah made it 2-0 in the 34th minute. Swedru All Blacks are top of the table with 36 points – 4 points ahead of second placed Rospak FC.
Meanwhile, Former Premier League side Cape Coast Mysterious Dwarfs recorded their fourth successive home victory after beaten New Edubiase United 2-1 at the Robert Mensah Park. Enoch Odoom struck first for Cape Coast Mysterious Dwarfs in the 19th minute but Steven Asante equalized for New Edubiase United before halftime. After the interval, Godfred Eshun scored from distance in the 65th minute to help Cape Coast Mysterious Dwarfs secure all the points.
Here are the results in Zone Two
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Cervical Cancer alert: Avoid sex at early age
The Programmes Manager of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Mary Efua Commeh, has advised young girls to avoid sex at an early age.
This, she explained, will give the cervix the opportunity to mature before they become sexually active.
“You need to delay what we call the first sexual intercourse as much as possible to give the cervix the opportunity to mature before the person becomes sexually active,” she said.
Dr Commeh stated this in an interview with The Spectator in Accra on Tuesday as a part of the Cervical Cancer awareness month.
According to her, cervical cancer was the second leading female cancer in Ghana with a total of about 3,072 cases annually, and out of that, 1,815 deaths are recorded, representing more than 50 per cent.
She indicated that “If young girls are going to be sexually active, then you need to talk to your parents about being vaccinated.”
She explained that vaccinating young girls against human papillomavirus (HPV) has been found to be a very effective way of preventing cervical cancer.
“There are countries that started HPV vaccination years ago and they are not seeing any cervical cancers now because they would have eliminated most of the high-risk HPVs in their women. So if the high-risk HPV is not there, then obviously the results on cervical cancers are going to go down,” she added.
Dr Commmey said the HPV vaccination is recommended for young girls aged nine to 14 years, adding that it had been found to be highly effective, not just for cervical cancers but for other HPV-related cancers, such as anal cancers, cancers of the vagina, genital warts, amongst others.
She further elaborated that the idea is to put up a barrier before the HPV comes in and that once a young female encounters it, she is already protected.
She also mentioned that for cervical cancers, the main cause is called HPV infection, saying generally, all sexually active women acquire HPV at some point in their lives.
However, the Programmes Manager of NCDs at the GHS mentioned that the body has a way of clearing the HPV, explaining that it is a natural mechanism that goes on, unfortunately, there are a few women whose HPV persists.
Moreover, she noted that the numbers for Cervical Cancer tend to be much higher because at times, clients would wait, and try all sorts of medications before they finally report to the health facility saying “we actually lose some women before they get to the hospitals with over 75 per cent of the cases coming in its third and fourth stages.”
Dr Commey, therefore, called for public awareness while ensuring the availability of information for prevention and control.
By Jemima Esinam Kuatsinu
