Making a statement at the event, the acting provost, COMAHS, Dr. Mohamed Samai, reminded the audience that the ceremony should have taken place last year, but that the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak disrupted normal academic work. As a result, he explained, final year students were unable to complete their courses of study or complete the requirement for the degrees to be conferred and their diplomas and certificates awarded.
He pointed out that the EVD which prompted the declaration of a public health emergency, did not only disrupt the academic programme, but also caused the death of a number of faculty members and other healthcare personnel in the country.
Dr Samai noted they are yet to recover from the EVD’s devastating effects, adding that the vacuum created by the demise of faculty members will take some time to fill and prayed: “May their souls rest in peace”.
He noted that the ceremony has two purposes. The first is the swearing-in ceremony and the second, the ceremony for the conferment of degrees.
In his concluding statement, an alumnus of COMAHS thanked the Centre for Disease Control of the United States of America, the Ministry of Education Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, for doing everything to get the College back on track after the EVD.
He expressed hope that the graduates will practise medicine honestly and uphold professional standards.
The graduation ceremony was held at the Kossoh Town Campus, Hastings in the Western Area Rural.
