Educator and Gender Advocate, Dr Abena Nyarkoa, has warned that sexual abuse is becoming normalised in Ghanaian schools because perpetrators are not being held accountable.
She has called for immediate action, including clear policies on how schools should handle allegations of sexual misconduct and stronger education to help prevent abuse.
Speaking on JoyNews’ The Pulse on Thursday, October 15, Dr Nyarkoa said the failure to punish perpetrators undermined efforts to address the problem.
“If I have to be frank, I think it has been normalised. I think sex in schools has been normalised. And it is very important that we are talking about it now; it needs to be addressed. The key question we have to ask is, why does it keep happening over and over again? It is because people are not held accountable,” she said.
Her comments followed allegations of sexual abuse involving the headmaster of Obuasi Senior High Technical School and female students.
READ ALSO: Obuasi SHTS: Number of students alleging sexual abuse rises to 16
Dr Nyarkoa stressed the need for authorities to establish clear procedures for responding to such cases and ensure that those found culpable face consequences.
She also called for greater parental involvement, arguing that efforts to protect students must include parents alongside school authorities.
According to her, education on sexual abuse must receive greater attention to discourage misconduct, while accountability must underpin measures to safeguard students.
“There is this social parlance that ‘prevention is better than cure’, so we need to address it at the root. I am saying that education is very important; education on sexual consent and sexual boundaries is very important,”
“We need to involve parents as well. Parents must have a conversation with their children,” she said.
The Obuasi case is the subject of a JoyNews investigation by Manasseh Azure Awuni, titled Inside the Dreaded Headmaster’s Bungalow, which examines allegations against the school’s headmaster, Zakaria Abdulai.
MyJoyOnline reported on October 15 that Manasseh initially received information concerning five students. The number increased to 14 during his visit to the school, with two additional students subsequently coming forward, bringing the total to 16.
The investigation also reported that complaints had reached municipal authorities, education officials and other influential figures months before the headmaster’s suspension.
On October 13, Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu directed the Ghana Education Service to suspend Mr Abdulai pending a full investigation. He also requested an investigation by the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ghana Police Service.
The allegations against the headmaster remain subject to investigation.