Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu has assured that no one implicated in the Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) case will be shielded from prosecution, vowing that all persons found culpable will face the full force of the law.
He said the government remained concerned about the incident and would take appropriate action once the necessary evidence had been established.
Speaking at the 150th anniversary celebration of Mfantsipim School on November 14, disclosed that the evidence gathered so far points to a prima facie case, prompting him to refer the matter to the Police Criminal Investigations Department (CID), the Attorney-General and the Minister for the Interior for further action.
“Matters relating to Obuasi SHTS remain a scar for government. Let me assure you that nobody will be shielded. Once the evidence is available, government will take appropriate steps to prosecute and make sure that we exact punishment on persons who are culpable,” he said.
“The evidence before us points to what the courts may describe as a prima facie case, but since the Ministry of Education and GES are not competent courts, I will accordingly refer, and have referred, the matter to the Police CID, the Attorney-General and the Minister for the Interior to take consequential actions that bring any teacher to the discipline of the law,” he stated.
He explained that the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service (GES) were not competent to determine criminal liability, hence the need for the relevant state institutions to take over the matter.
He said the referral was intended to ensure that any teacher found culpable was brought to face the law.
On secondary education reforms, Haruna Iddrisu announced that the government would invest 300 million dollars in the sector, with 2.8 billion cedis earmarked for expanding infrastructure in secondary schools.
The investment will fund the construction of 10 new model senior secondary schools across 10 regions, while 30 Category B schools will be upgraded to Category A status.
The Minister also said that the 12 best-performing senior high schools in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) would benefit from a combined GH¢250 million allocation from the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund).
The allocation will support infrastructure expansion in Category A schools, including the construction of facilities such as dormitories, assembly halls and ICT centres.
