After Obuasi, Parliament wants abuse reports to bypass school heads

Parliamentary committees have called for an independent channel that would let students report sexual abuse without going through their school heads, following the abuse case at Obuasi Senior High Technical School.

In a joint statement issued after a briefing on the case on Tuesday, November 10, the committees also called for a register of sexual offenders and a safeguarding audit of schools, Graphic Online and ModernGhana reported.

What the committees want

Graphic reported that the committees described the existing Ghana Education Service reporting pathways as "broken". They want a third-party mechanism that does not rely on heads of institutions.

Other demands in the statement, as reported by Graphic, include safeguarding training for teachers, care for survivors at the expense of the state, protection of the identities of the children involved under the Children's Act, and regular briefings for the committees by the ministers responsible.

ModernGhana's report of the statement likewise listed the sexual offenders register, the independent reporting channel, the safeguarding audit, teacher training and speedy prosecution among the committees' demands.

The committees also asked the Interior Minister and the Inspector-General of Police to expedite proceedings against the headmaster at the centre of the case, and urged the judiciary to treat the matter urgently.

ModernGhana quoted the statement as saying religious and political bodies "should desist from frustrating the criminal justice system", and that "Ghana's schools must be sanctuaries of learning, not predatory grounds".

Graphic reported that the committees promised "active, unyielding oversight" of the case.

Call for a national register

Separately, Korle Klottey MP Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings urged Parliament on Tuesday to establish a national sex offenders register, 3News and Adomonline reported. She told the House that lawmakers could not keep expressing outrage over such cases without acting.

Protecting the children

GhEcho is not identifying any of the students involved. The committees' statement itself calls for their identities to be protected.

GhEcho will follow the case as it moves through the courts and Parliament.