Senior Political Science Lecturer at the University of Ghana, Professor Ransford Gyampo, has paid glowing tribute to his former student and now colleague, Professor Alidu Seidu, who was recently sworn in as a Member of Parliament.
In a heartfelt statement posted on social media, Prof Gyampo recounted his long academic and professional relationship with Prof Seidu, describing his elevation to the legislature as both divine and well-deserved.
“Prof Alidu Seidu was my student at UG. He became a colleague lecturer and rose to become my Head of Department and later, an Associate Professor of Political Science. It was under his tenure as Head of the Department that I got promoted to the rank of Full Professor,” Gyampo wrote on his Facebook page.
According to him, Prof Seidu played a crucial role in his own academic advancement by defending his promotion application before the University’s Appointments and Promotions Board.
“Defending applications to the highest promotional rank at the premiere university before accomplished professors, provosts, and vice chancellors requires a certain mental strength, ruggedness, resilience, and wisdom. Anyone with these attributes would necessarily be a good choice for,” he noted.
He revealed that the news of his former student’s entry into Parliament came as a pleasant surprise, describing it as a testament to divine providence.
“What can happen to you by way of divine providence has never been fathomed by the human mind. Keep serving at your small corner. Your time would come,” he encouraged.
Prof Gyampo lauded his colleague’s calm yet firm demeanor, intellectual depth, and data-driven approach to decision-making, predicting that his contributions to parliamentary debates would be impactful and research-based.
“I know Prof Alidu very well. He is calm but firm, knowledgeable and wise, erudite and articulate. He eats research, and his contributions to parliamentary debates cannot be unseasoned with empirical data,” he said.
Prof Gyampo added that Prof Seidu had long been instrumental in the electoral success of several politicians.
“He actually has been the cause of the electoral success of many of his colleague parliamentarians, as he was the one who conducted research about their electoral fortunes and told them what to do to win their seats,” he revealed.
Prof Gyampo stressed, “Parliament has gained and Ghana has gained. Hearty congratulations, Abokyi.”