Akosua Manu, an adviser on Gender and Social Protection to former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has criticised state institutions over their handling of allegations of sexual abuse involving 19 female students of Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS).
She said the Ghana Education Service’s (GES) decision to extend the mandate of the committee investigating the allegations by another week showed that authorities were reacting to public pressure rather than following established procedures for dealing with sexual abuse cases in schools.
Speaking on JoyNews’ The Pulse on Friday, November 6, after members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Women’s Wing staged a protest over the incident, Ms Manu alleged that some officials had attempted to suppress the matter before it attracted public attention.
“So what he's saying now is just reactionary; clearly there are no systems in place that follow up on such allegations. It is also clear some persons covered up but for public outreach,” she said.
Ms Manu argued that the problem was not limited to public senior high schools, warning that similar incidents could occur in private institutions without effective reporting and accountability structures.
She also questioned President John Dramani Mahama’s silence on the allegations, describing the reported involvement of a headmaster and 19 female students as an unprecedented incident in Ghana’s history.
She said the government’s failure to publicly address the matter raised questions about its commitment to protecting women and girls.
“So it cannot be that you parade yourself as a champion of all things gender, that you are pro-women and something like this is happening to future leaders of this country and they're silent,” she added.
The former vice-president’s adviser further criticised the GES, police and Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection for what she described as a lack of urgency in responding to the allegations.
She called on the police to provide a detailed update on the investigation, including the steps taken so far and the progress made by investigators.
“We've not even had a presser, an up-to-date chronological order from even the police led by a female, the CID boss, in this matter. Just give us a blueprint of what you have done despite this issue,” she said.
Ms Manu also urged investigators to establish whether there could be other potential victims, given that the headmaster had previously worked at other schools.
She warned that the way the case was being handled could discourage victims and witnesses from reporting abuse, particularly if they believed they would not receive adequate protection.
“There are people who are willing to speak up, but having observed how this thing has been handled, it's clear there's no protection for the victims,” she said.
