Deputy Minister for Education Dr Clement Apaak has confirmed that two suspects have been arrested in connection with the gang rape of a student of Osino Senior High School during a school sports festival in the Eastern Region.

Speaking to JoyNews on Thursday, February 12, Dr Apaak said the arrests were part of a firm response by the Ministry of Education to rising concerns about indiscipline in schools.

Dr Apaak said he had been directed by the Minister for Education to take up the matter.

“I was the one directed by the minister to take it up, and through the Ghana Education Service, I can inform the good people of Ghana that two culprits have since been arrested as being part of the perpetrators of the heinous act of rape, and they are assisting the police in the investigation,” he said.

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He added that the victim is receiving support. “The young lady herself is receiving counselling, and we are doing our best to ensure that she's properly rehabilitated,” he noted.

He said investigations into the stabbing incident are also ongoing and used the opportunity to send a warning to students and parents.

“Let me be clear, to both students and particularly to parents, students should be informed, and they should know that we will not tolerate any acts of lawlessness and misconduct,” he said.

He said that parents must take responsibility for their children’s behaviour.

“Parents have a duty to ensure that their wards conduct themselves properly within the context of being in an academic environment. If they do not caution their wards and look the other way, or they don't pay attention to the conduct of their wards in school and the wards engage in acts of lawlessness or misconduct, they should expect the most severe sanctions to be meted out to them.”

According to the deputy minister, discipline in schools is essential to the country’s future.

“We need a disciplined society. We cannot build the Ghana we want, we cannot improve our conditions, and we cannot think about a better future if our future leaders are allowed to become indisciplined citizens acting lawlessly and misconducting themselves,” he said.

“So it is for our collective good to ensure that our students at all levels are disciplined and they act within the context of lawfulness.”

Dr Apaak also referred to a previous incident at Kade Senior High School to show what he described as the government’s firm stance.

“In terms of the Kade case, that was a typical example of the current approach as far as the ministry and government are concerned in our aversion to acts of lawlessness and misconduct,” he said.

He recalled that a group of past and present students assaulted a teacher who had prevented them from cheating during the last WASSCE examination.

“One popular incident was when a number of students, past and present from Kade Senior High School, assaulted one of their teachers because he prevented them from cheating during the last WASSCE examination,” Dr Apaak said.

Although the teacher later made peace with the students through their families, the ministry insisted that the matter be pursued.

“Although the teacher had made peace with the students through the intervention of their families, we still insisted that the law ought to take its course,” he explained.

“Subsequently, the students were arrested, and they were taken to court, and they were found guilty, but I hear that part of the sanction was for them to pay some fines.”

Dr Apaak said the Ministry of Education, under the leadership of Haruna Iddrisu and with the backing of President John Mahama, would continue to act firmly.

“Let me put on record that the Ministry of Education under the leadership of Haruna Iddrisu and the direction of his Excellency the President would no longer tolerate acts of lawlessness and misconduct,” he said.

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