By Prince Acquah
Cape Coast, July 28, GNA – Rev John Ntim Fordjour, Deputy Minister for Education, has cautioned students of the legal repercussions for acts of indiscipline beyond regular school punishments such as suspensions and dismissal.
He noted that there were criminal and other related laws in the country, which when breached, could land them into serious trouble with the state irrespective of their status as students.
“There are laws in every space you find yourself and being a student does not immune you. If you commit any offence in breach of these laws, remember that the school or the ministry cannot prevent the law enforcement agencies from doing their work,” he said.
He, therefore, urged them to stay away from perverse behaviours and live a decent life to have a successful and fulfilling future.
Rev Fordjour made the admonition when he and Mr Stephen Kwaku Owusu, Deputy Director General of the Ghana Education Service, visited the Adisadel College as part of efforts to conclusively deal with the viral assault case which happened in the school.
They met with school heads, teachers, housemasters and students to discuss how to eliminate all forms of hostilities in the school and ensure a conducive learning environment for academic and behavioural excellence.
The discussions also touched on discouraging the culture of cover-ups among students and encourage them to report serious issues of this nature.
It is now known that the students involved in the incident were mates fighting over a SIM card, which resulted in one of them smashing the other’s face on a metal bed frame.
The graphic incident, which caused a public uproar over general bullying in schools, has caught the attention of the Ministry of Education and the Attorney General and has since taken a legal twist.
So far, the perpetrator has been arrested, cautioned and released to the school’s headmaster to produce him in court on Friday, July 28.
The victim, who was also suspended, has been recalled on the instruction of the Ministry of Education.
Rev Fordjour noted that a thorough medical examination conducted on the victim revealed he was doing well.
He intimated that the legal and serious nature of the case would serve as a lesson for students to know that there were consequences for everything.
He, however, noted that the priority of the Ministry now was to ensure that all the students involved were psychologically sound enough to write their final exams.
To that end, he said the ministry had deployed psychologists to provide the affected students with psycho-social support as they prepare for their WASSCE.
He pledged the ministry’s resolve to ensure the matter ended conclusively.
GN