The management of the institution has already consulted some of the oil companies, including Tullow Ghana Limited, and the Centre for Energy Studies in Texas on the introduction of the programmes.
A laboratory has already been set up for' the successful implementation of those programmes. The Rector of the polytechnic, Rev. Professor Daniel Nyarko, announced this when the management of the institution interacted with the press corps in Takoradi. He said the oil companies had come to inspect facilities at the polytechnic to ascertain how prepared it was to offer the programmes. Rev. Prof. Nyarko said the school authorities were in touch with traditional leaders in the region to ask them to advise children in their communities to enter the polytechnic to take up the challenge to pursue the technical programmes in the oil industry. He said the school authorities were making arrangements to meet the Western Regional House of Chiefs to inform it about what the polytechnic could do for it in terms of the oil find. Touching on distance education, the rector explained that the polytechnic, on its own, could not decide to start satellite campuses for distance learning programmes and that it must be approved by the National Board for Technical Examination. Rev. Prof. Nyarko further explained that unlike the universities, the polytechnics were not autonomous, adding that the universities were unique and that by their charter they could start new programmes. Besides, he said, distance learning programmes involved a lot of money. The rector said management wanted to run degree programmes in most of the courses it was doing at the Higher National Diploma (HND) level and also start masters’ degree programmes in the polytechnic. Rev. Prof. Nyarko said management had set in motion an ethics policy spelling out the relationship between lecturers and students. Concerning accommodation, he said it was not only students' accommodation that was a problem but also staff housing, adding, "We are doing what we can to save the situation." He said management would stay neutral so long as the polytechnic allowed the formation of associations on its campus, noting that there were many such groups on campus, not only political groups. "We will allow them to operate so long as they remain within the confines of the rules and regulations of the polytechnic," Rev Prof Nyarko said. The Chairman of the Polytechnic Council, Dr George K.T. Oduro, explained that the council was not a political institution but one of the structures that had been put in place to ensure that the vision and the mission of the polytechnic were achieved.
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