The National Council of Parent-Teacher Associations (NCPTA) has called for the criminal prosecution of a teacher featured in a viral video engaging in a sexual act with a female student.
Describing the incident as disgusting, the NCPTA condemned it as a severe breach of trust, ethics, and the teaching profession itself.
The Ghana Education Service (GES) recently interdicted the teacher, who is based at Bole Senior High School (SHS) in the Savannah Region, after becoming aware of the disturbing footage circulating on social media.
While the GES has launched a formal investigation to establish the facts and suspended the teacher in line with its regulations, the NCPTA maintains that administrative action is entirely insufficient.
Gapson Kofi Raphael, the General Secretary of the NCPTA, demanded the immediate and permanent removal of the teacher’s name from the Ghana Education Service register, alongside an irreversible ban from teaching within the country.
He stressed that criminal prosecution is vital to serve as a deterrent to other educators who might seek to take advantage of vulnerable students.
Expressing the association’s outrage, Raphael stated:“What happened was not only disgusting but breaches trust, the sanctity of the teaching profession, and undermines the safety of students. Teachers are to help in shaping the minds, character, and behaviour of students. They are also to help in raising morally upright students, and so if teachers sleep with students, it defeats that purpose. It is a criminal offence which must warrant immediate prosecution. The teacher who did that does not deserve to teach.
He abandoned his ethical values and slept with the student. Just as we criticise students when they err, we have a responsibility to deal with this teacher. We commend the GES for interdicting him, but that is only an administrative action. It must move beyond that to prosecution. He should be granted an opportunity to defend himself and be punished in accordance with the law.”
He further underscored the broader responsibility of both educators and families in upholding moral standards, adding:“We can no longer entertain this kind of reckless behaviour from teachers. As parents, we also have a responsibility in raising our children. We need to support the teachers in training them.”
By:Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana