The embattled headmaster is being held after some of his students drowned
A Deputy Minister of Education Gifty Twum Ampofo has urged Ghanaians to be circumspect in how they vilify the headmaster at the center of the drowning of nine students of the St Charles Lwanga R/C Junior High school in the Saboba District of the Northern Region.
The Deputy Minister speaking on the issue noted that the headmaster may not have had bad intentions in using the students to work on his face farm.
She said some of the students may have agreed to help the headmaster without being pressured or forced.
Addressing the issue on Nyankonton Mu Nsem on Rainbow Radio 87.5Fm, she extended condolence to all affected families of the disaster.
She said “if what we have heard is true, the headmaster did not punish the students. The relationship between teachers and their students varies from community to community.
“The children could have gone to the farm on their own accord. That is not punishment. That is not a force. This could be described as father and child relationship. Unfortunately, such an incident befell the headmaster. We have to tread cautiously on how to attack the headmaster or comment on the issue.
“I am appealing to Ghanaians to be circumspect. If we have any information that the headmaster forced the students, that would have been different. But for now, we have to remain calm and allow the authorities to deal with the matter.”
According to her, we cannot also claim that it was during school hours that the headmaster sent the students to the farm, hence we have to wait for all the facts before making any comments.
Meanwhile, the headmaster has been interdicted.
The Ghana Education Service has also that a committee will also be set up to investigate the incident that claimed the lives of the nine.
The Director-General Professor Kwasi Opoku Amankwa, made this pronouncement on Monday at Saboba when a delegation led by the Deputy Minister of Education met with families of the deceased to sympathize with them on the loss of their children.