The Ghana Education Service (GES) last week dismissed eight female students of Chiana Senior High School in the Kassena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region, for making derogatory comments against President Akufo-Addo in a video that went viral.
The eight students in the video were seen making disparaging comments against the President and his free Senior High School (SHS) policy. There were mixed reactions to the sacking of the girls, as some individuals and institutions condemned the punishment as high-handed, and that the future of the young girls would be jeopardised. Others held the view that the punishment was apt, because it would serve as a deterrent to others.
However, after several pleas for clemency for the eight dismissed Chiana SHS girls, President Akufo-Addo intervened in the situation. As a result, the GES referred the matter to the school’s Disciplinary Committee to explore alternative sanctions other than dismissal. Consequently, the Minister of Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, directed the GES to consider an alternative disciplinary action instead of dismissal.
The Chronicle holds the view that the punishment was extreme. The GES has a wide spectrum of punishments for such misconducts, and that they could have invited the parents of the girls to sign a bond of good behaviour and be taken through counseling to reform them.
Counseling is one of the important components of reformation in our educational system, whilst recognising the psychological needs of the young girls. The academic dismissal of students can lead to students becoming dropouts, since no other educational institution would be ready to admit dismissed students to continue with their education.
We are, therefore, happy that President Akufo-Addo intervened and that the GES is exploring alternative sanctions other than the dismissal of the young girls.
The Chronicle would also like to tackle the lapse of the school authorities in maintaining discipline. It is a known fact that students in Senior High Schools under the GES are banned from using mobile phones. How then were the students able to record the video, if the GES does not permit students in second-cycle schools to use them?
This means the school authorities are not ensuring that students are banned from using mobile phones in school. What happened to the rules and regulations governing the institution? Prevention, they say, is better than cure.
The Chronicle is appalled by the school authority’s inability to prevent students from using mobile phones on campus. If the students were prevented from using mobile phones by the appropriate authorities, the video recording wouldn’t have happened in the first place, let alone get to the internet.
Not only should the students be punished, but the school authorities should also be dealt with for allowing the students to use mobile phones on campus. This will deter others from doing the same.
The advent of stylish phones and social media platforms has captured the attention, time and focus of many students and the usage of mobile phones in Senior High Schools is causing a lot of distractions to students.
We therefore advise the authorities not to hesitate to take serious action against students who engage in such practices to avoid the occurrence of unforeseen problems.
