According to them, activities of sexual promiscuity and defilement on the part of teachers and parents should not be settled amicably at home but must be treated with the utmost attention in the law court.
Contributing to a statement made by the MP for Abuakwa North, Prof. (Emeritus) Samuel Amoako, the MPs called for stiffer punishment for such teachers to serve as a deterrent to others.
In his statement, Prof. Amoako said teachers who defile children or enter into any form of sexual relationship should be tried and outrightly dismissed after they serve their sentences.
“Adults, in general, should receive stiffer punishments when they defile children, especially students,’’ he stressed.
According to him, activities of sexual promiscuity and defilement on the part of teachers and parents do not set a good example for students to emulate, stressing the need for teachers to lead exemplary lives and serve as role models for their students.
Admitting the fact that many teachers are good role models and work diligently, the MP said a few “rotten eggs among them bring the whole profession into disrepute, ridicule and disgraceâ€Â
Hence, he advocated for sex education to be taught in schools at an early age to enable students appreciate the possible consequences of their sexual activities.
Prof. Amoako, whose statement touched on child labour, the practice of initiating of first year students in the boarding schools, popularly referred to as ‘homoing’, examination malpractices and other forms of indiscipline in the schools, condemned such moral fiber in its entirety and called on the Ministry of Education and Ghana Education Service (GES) to instill some discipline into the fabric of the society to ensure a promising future for the nation.
GES, he said, should imbue the culture of respect for authority and state institutions.
Calling for the ban of corporal punishment in all schools, which he described as barbaric which inflicts unnecessary pain on students and imposes on them far-reaching psychological trauma, the MP suggested an effective method of punishing and correcting children without inflicting unnecessary pain and suffering that negatively affect their adult personality.
Supporting the statement, MP for Komenda-Edina Eguafo-Abrem, Dr Joseph Annan, said the role the GES plays in sanctioning teachers who commit rape by transferring them is not the best.
According to him, it allows them to commit more anti-social vices, calling on GES to be up and doing to curb such laxities in the system.
MP for Sekondi, Papa Owusu Ankomah, blamed the inability to enforce regulation by sanction and failure of persons in authority to effectively supervise their subordinate as contributory factors to indiscipline.
Accusing parents and guardians for shirking their responsibilities and leaving matters of discipline in the hands of those in the educational sector, he said the educational sector should be firm when it comes to discipline. He also stressed the need for the enforcement of existing regulations.
In his contribution, MP for Ningo Prampram, Enoch Teye Mensa, said discipline should begin at home, stressing “parents should stop saying ‘Obira Ban nye’, to wit nobody’s child is perfect, and inculcate the sense of discipline in the children†.
He also called for the institution of respect for seniority and authority as well as respect for various institutions of state into the curriculum.
MP for Lawra /Nandom, Ambrose Dery, said leaders of Parliament should set good examples and play their part as leaders to ensure that the right thing was done, adding, “let’s walk the talkâ€Â, he said.
By Sheilla Sackey & Awudu Mahama