OPINION: MY INFORMATION IS PRIVATE

http://www.ucctalks.com/


It has become usual for students to expect messages from aspirants of various SRC, L/NUGS and JCRC portfolios every election year on campus. Sometimes your phone beeps, you rush for it, lo and behold one of those annoying messages from aspirants. 

Some Students are no longer finding it interesting. The questions being asked are: where did they get the mobile phone numbers from? Who gave it to them? Is it right?

The answers are not far fetched. Upon entrance into this noble institution, there are about three places or so which one gives out his or her details. The details for ones portal, the department and the halls. As to who in particular gives out the numbers, I would not want to indict any of them but its up to us the individuals to determine because we know where we gave our numbers out and up to the aspirants to tell us where they got the numbers from.

We gave our mobile numbers in the aforementioned areas believing that it is meant for administrative work and also to help reach us incase we are needed. So to give our numbers out to a third party, it is a breach of trust and our privacy. It is ethically wrong. Indeed it is in Ghana that we don't take such issues serious, in other jurisdictions this could lead to a court suit. 

I however, want to empathize with some aspirants. Some find themselves in difficult position because their opponents have gone in for the mobile phone numbers to reach the students which put them in a disadvantaged position.So in other to find equal level With them, they also go in for it.

Permit me to speculate a little. If they obtain the mobile numbers from the students records then we must ask how safe our records are. During last year's students election, there was print out of results of one of the aspirants from his portal and was in circulation. How was it obtain? Maybe the student was negligent With his password. 
 In era in which we are seeking to attach lecturer assessment to the portal we want to believe that our information on the portal is safe. If an academic counselor will go to students records in his capacity as an academic counselor and print out students results then I am wondering if he will not be able to access my assessment of him through same medium. 

This write is not meant to indict anyone but to encourage us to pay attention to how our records are handled and to protect students information.

Tunde Awosika
Yours in students service.
10/01/2016
source http://www.ucctalks.com/