No student should perform domestic duties for teachers – GES directed

The Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has instructed the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) to prevent students from being required to carry out domestic tasks for school administrators and teachers. Iddrisu emphasized the importance of safeguarding students from situations where they are treated as if they were domestic servants.

This directive came in response to sexual misconduct allegations involving Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) headmaster Zakaria Abdulai and female students. The incident has raised concerns and prompted demands for more robust protections for students and accountability measures in educational settings. Iddrisu promised that the Ministry of Education and the GES would take the necessary administrative and legal actions to protect learners and stressed that the investigation into the allegations against Abdulai, who belongs to the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), would be conducted impartially and without regard to political affiliation.

The Minister called on parents, guardians, and students to back initiatives aimed at enhancing student safety in schools. Abdulai has been restrained pending the outcome of the investigation, and the criminal aspects of the allegations have been transferred to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID). The investigation into the allegations continues.