Two women’s rights advocacy groups have urged the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Tetteh Yohuno, to ensure a swift and independent investigation into allegations of sexual abuse involving the Headmaster of Obuasi Senior High Technical School.
The Network of Peace and Security Women in the ECOWAS Space (NOPSWECO-Ghana) and the Working Group on Women, Youth, Peace and Security (WGWYPS) said the investigation should cover individuals and institutions that may have concealed complaints, intimidated victims or facilitated impunity.
In a joint statement shared with the Ghana News Agency on Tuesday, the groups condemned the alleged conduct of the Headmaster, Abdulai Zakari, who has been arrested as investigations continue.
Madam Euphemia Akos Dzathor, President of NOPSWECO-Ghana, and Madam Theodora Williams Anti, Convenor of WGWYPS, called for the prosecution of the accused if found guilty, irrespective of political affiliation, social status or institutional position.
They urged the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, the Ghana Education Service (GES), the Ghana Health Service and other relevant child protection institutions to provide comprehensive, survivor-centred support to the affected girls.
The statement said such support should include professional trauma counselling, medical care, legal assistance, protection from intimidation and measures to ensure that the girls continued their education without stigma.
It stressed the need to protect the identities, confidentiality and dignity of the affected girls throughout the investigation and judicial processes, adding that justice must also encompass their recovery, healing and future well-being.
The statement welcomed plans by Parliament to summon GES leadership to account for its handling of sexual abuse allegations in schools.
It also called for an independent nationwide review of complaints involving teachers and school authorities, particularly cases that had resulted in transfers, suspensions or other administrative actions.
The groups urged authorities to strengthen confidential, child-friendly reporting mechanisms in schools and ensure that suspected criminal conduct was referred to law enforcement agencies.
They further called on parents, traditional authorities, religious leaders, political actors and communities to reject the culture of silence, intimidation and informal settlements that enabled sexual violence.
The statement said commitments to protecting women, girls and vulnerable people must go beyond speeches, policies and commemorative events.
“A society that fails to protect its girls from sexual violence cannot claim to be advancing their security, dignity or empowerment,” it said, reaffirming the groups’ solidarity with the girls of Obuasi and other survivors whose experiences had been ignored or concealed.
It maintained that the Headmaster’s interdiction and the referral of the allegations to the Criminal Investigations Department should not replace a thorough investigation into possible institutional failures that may have allowed the alleged abuse to occur.
Source: GNA
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