In my last post, I've advocated change at the top of the Guc leadership. Fear not, Change is Coming.
After the so many responses I've become more and more convinced that that change is Certain.
You see no one questioned that Ashraf Mansour's leadership style has failed, Not one Single Person tried to argue to defend him. The main objections I got were: He cant go, He's the owner of this University.
This false belief is the result of two things: First, people are unaware of the laws and conventions that govern such Institutions, simply put: Universities have a Mission of Education, in that Mission the importance falls on the Academic Staff and the Students, thats where the real decision power making should be, never in the world does a President continue managing the University without the support of its Students.
I say President, because thats another point people are unaware about: The Chairman is a Chairman of the Board of Trustees only, he calls their meetings, takes their votes, and they decide on the President who handles the day to day running of the University. Then they listen to the Staff and Students and evaluate his performance.
But Prof. Mansour instead installs a President by title only who no one obeys and then centralizes all decision making in the Chairman's office, stepping over the Authorities of the President, the Faculty Deans and the Doctors - This is fact, the Guc Managment even interferes in grading. This is done nowhere in the world.
And of the thousands of Private universities in the world, only a handful are run by their owners - an extremely small minority. And then usually in third-rate certificate giving universities, never an important and ambitious one as the Guc.
So he will resign as Chairman or limit the position to its original authorities in the least, He'll not go anywhere, we're not asking to take his money. He'll still own and have a say in the board when they elect a new chairman and a new honest President who's Independent and Focuses on the Teaching, not Profit! And who the students and the staff would accept.
The owners will still collect a reasonable amount of return on their investment and the President would not let less than 85-90% of what the students pay GO TO THEIR Education, now that figure is probably in the range of shamefully 15-30%.
This will rise up with our University beyond what anyone can imagine: and thats the second point, people don't know how, beyond all the 'best in the region and world' slogans, are university - our students, researchers, and staff, how far they are from fulfilling their potential as one the truly best universities in the world and the region.
But thats okay .. we have time .. during the next two weeks Prof. Mansour has one of two options on his hand: give us an Honest, Completely Student-Governed Union; which means he has NO say on WHO they nominate (he'll use the rules to choose those who don't oppose him) or any limits on the Unions ability to organize protests and strikes (otherwise it has no means to press it demands and it becomes useless) - Furthermore, we will NOT accept any retaliatory action OF ANY NATURE against those who speak their minds (Punishments): the students who were organizing the protests were still being threatened to 'fear for their future' by Mr. Mansour's aides last week (according to them).
Its not students against the Guc, its Guc Chairman against the Guc. The TAs had already started negotiating with Mr. Mansour behind back doors and they have already pressed demands which are on the side of the students and have since threatened to join the students strike if they're not satisfied. And there's already pressure from Germany and once this reaches the Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education, it would not allow this University to go down, for some of the best academic talent in Egypt plus seven thousand students to go to waste for the cost of Mr. Mansour’s pride and policies, if his Institution does not want his leadership, he’ll go.
So If we get our union, we'll still advocate through it to fix ALL and EVERY little thing thats wrong, it'll just give us more power and time for our cause, in the end, people will realize the troubles of the Guc all fall back to him, and he’ll still be out.
And if we don't, we'll protest and protest and he'll face two choices: Act stubborn with us and let the situation enter into a deadlock and ministry will intervene by setting someone else in Charge according to the regulations and laws (no, it won't shut down or be publicized, those are crazy scare tactics) or his board will not agree to lose all their money because of one man's pride and they'll vote him out as Chairman (they're owners too, remember that), that is, if he doesn't realize he needs to step down to preserve his own fortune himself.
We’ll also set up the Union ourselves, let it be known: we never needed his Permission, its our right.
Of course, there’s a Scenario that Prof. Mansour’s Managment style will change, I wouldn't mind, I have nothing against Prof. Mansour's person, but I don’t believe he will. Even now he has not met with the Students Representatives, after the events of last week. He’s letting them talk to his aides. Even now rumors were being spread and promises were taken back, the negotiations are not held in good faith.
So, this year or the next, agrees to union or not, Prof. Mansour ill-treatment of his Staff and Students will one day stop. In the next coming few days, I'll be publishing facts and figures and leaked documents, this is worse than you imagine. Stay tuned.
we're doing this for our University's sake ..
P.S. If they decide to dispute this in anyway, the claims about the profit especially, let them release their financial statement, they'll argue its their right to hide and sure, we can argue about that. But if there really was no mismanagment, if there were no mistakes that resulted on most of the money not being channeled to us, they wouldn't mind. IF YOU HAVE NOTHING WRONG YOU HAVE NOTHING TO HIDE. None of us will be angry at them of they earn a large sum of money, just as long as we get a reasonable amount of what we pay for back in Education, at least more than 75%.
Oh, and just for you they claim they have huge costs: upper management salaries do not count.
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