The sad story of 9-year-old Nuru Ibrahim of Asamakama Primary School, Ofinso, Ashanti Region, whose swollen and gangrenous hand made a disturbing spectacle on the front page of the Daily Guide yesterday, poses questions about the state of corporal punishment and oversight supervision of the relevant authorities, including head-teachers, in public schools.
Caning or spanking is a crude means of disciplining kids both at homes and schools, reason for which the Ghana Education Service (GES), in line with prevalent practice worldwide, deemed it appropriate to ban it.
The GES went ahead to fret that in spite of the ban, the practice persists; the case of Nuru Ibrahim is sufficient proof of the fears of the GES.
There could be many instances of the inappropriate punishment in some backwoods of the country, out of sight and hearing.
Corporal punishment is an outlawed means of punishing defaulting pupils and so teachers who resort to it are flouting a GES directive and should therefore be dealt with accordingly.
The conduct of Mr. Amoako Samuel, the teacher of the little boy, is most reprehensible and the ordeal the victim is going through is one of the reasons underpinning the banning of that mode of punishment.
Having been admitted for 15 days in hospital, the boy has still not recovered enough to partake in normal school activities.
In the face of the anomaly, the teacher who earlier disagreed that he caned the boy, eventually changed his stance, explaining that he caned his buttocks and not hand.
A lying primary teacher is one who should not be expected to be imparting good morals to the children in his care.
According to the GES, it appears that teachers who still use canes in schools do so without the notice of head-teachers or school authorities.
It is our position that head-teachers keep an eye on teachers so they can monitor the compliance or otherwise of the directive.
Only this can ensure a total compliance and the elimination of the outmoded practice with no place in contemporary times.
When little Nuru loses interest in school, it is the aftermath of what he suffered at the hands of Mr. Amoako Samuel.
Some instances of truancy and eventual dropping out of school are attributable to the unfriendliness of teachers.
It is heartwarming though to learn that child right activists have raised their voices against the act.
Considering the foregone, in the light of the predicament of Nuru Ibrahim, we are demanding that both the school authorities and the district education officials take the necessary action against the teacher.
We are also confident that the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs will also show interest in the case of Nuru Ibrahim and ensure that he returns to school soonest.
Taking him to another school will be such a wonderful idea, given the eyes that will be upon him when he returns to the Asamakama Primary School in Offinso.
Merely asking the wicked teacher to pay the cost of the kid’s medication is not enough; we demand something more than this flimsy sanction. Above all, head-teachers under whose watch teachers cane pupils should also suffer punishment for their laxity in the performance of their duties.