International corporate lawyer Victoria Bright has urged the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to dissociate itself from the head of Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS), who is reportedly seeking political office, amid sexual abuse allegations against him.
She said anyone facing such serious allegations should not be given greater political influence while the matter remains under scrutiny, stressing the need to protect students and establish the facts through a fair investigation.
Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile programme on Saturday, October 17, Ms Bright questioned why the headmaster would seek political office amid the allegations.
“This is exactly the problem with our country. Why should someone like that be contesting for a political post? It is something that defies all logic and all reasoning. I do not understand,” she said.
Read also: Obuasi SHTS head accused of sexually abusing students is NDC Juaben secretary seeking chairmanship
Ms Bright said the governing party should distance itself from the individual, saying that people facing serious allegations of abuse should not be placed in positions that could increase their power or influence.
“And if I were part of the governing party, I would disassociate myself from someone like that. These are not the kind of people who should be given more power. They should not be empowered to carry on perpetrating these kinds of acts,” she said.
Her comments come amid public concern over the sexual abuse allegations involving the head of Obuasi SHTS.
Ms Bright said the response to the allegations should focus on protecting students, establishing the facts and holding anyone found responsible accountable.
She said that the allegations must be investigated fairly, with the evidence guiding any decisions on responsibility.
“The measure of our response will be whether students are protected, whether the allegations are fairly investigated, and whether responsibility is established wherever the evidence leads,” she said.
Describing the allegations as a serious breach of trust, the lawyer called for a thorough investigation into the headmaster’s conduct.
She also said the need to establish what other people who may have had knowledge of the alleged incidents did about them.
“The key question for me is what each responsible person knew, when they knew it, and what they did next,” she said.
Ms Bright called for the matter to be treated with the seriousness it deserved, given the potential risks to students and the responsibility of school authorities to protect them.
She said the headmaster should face prosecution and imprisonment if an investigation established his guilt.
“It’s a total abuse of trust, and he must be fully investigated and jailed if he’s found to be culpable,” she said.
This comes after JoyNews investigative correspondent Manasseh Azure Awuni said the headmaster of Obuasi Senior High Technical School in the Ashanti Region, who has been suspended over sexual abuse allegations against female students, is a serving constituency secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and an aspirant for the chairmanship position.
According to him, the headmaster intends to contest the chairmanship at the party’s constituency delegates’ conference, expected before the end of the year.