Spokesperson to the Education Minister, Hashmin Mohammed, has defended Haruna Iddrisu’s handling of the alleged sexual abuse at Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS), insisting that the Minister took prompt steps to facilitate investigations into the matter.
In a Facebook post responding to former Education Ministry Public Relations Officer Kwasi Kwarteng, Mr Mohammed said the Minister instructed the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) to ensure the immediate suspension of the school’s headmaster after investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni brought the allegations to his attention.
He added that the Minister subsequently wrote to the Director-General of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), formally requesting a thorough investigation into the allegations.
Mr Mohammed’s response follows a post by Mr Kwarteng titled “Both the Education Minister and the Director-General of GES Should Step Aside If the Government Is Serious About Investigating the Obuasi SHS Abuses.”
Mr Kwarteng had raised concerns about an alleged letter dated July 26, 2025, reportedly written by the school’s old students to the Minister and the GES Director-General, arguing that no action had been taken.
However, Mr Mohammed said the Education Minister’s office had no record of receiving the correspondence.
He stressed that his clarification was limited to the Minister’s office and that he could not speak to the internal records of the GES Director-General’s office.
While acknowledging Mr Kwarteng’s right to criticise the Minister and demand accountability from public officials, Mr Mohammed urged him to ensure that his claims were supported by verifiable evidence.
“Public discourse on an issue as serious as alleged sexual abuse must be guided by verifiable facts, not assumptions or unsubstantiated claims,” he said.
He also invited Mr Kwarteng to publish any documentary evidence establishing that the letter was received by the Minister’s office, arguing that the Minister’s documented actions should form part of any fair assessment of his handling of the case.