Effia Member of Parliament, Hon. Isaac Boamah-Nyarko, has strongly endorsed calls for the establishment of a national sex offenders register, highlighting the devastating, lifelong psychological toll sexual abuse inflicts on young victims.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament during a contribution to a statement made by Dr. Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, the lawmaker emphasised that sexual assault cut across demographic lines.
“It is not just women that are being sexually abused. We also have men who are being sexually abused both in our secondary schools amongst others. And we also have people with mental incapacitation also being abused,” he stated.
Pointing out that Parliament must address the issue as a broad national concern, Hon. Boamah-Nyarko drew attention to the lasting trauma suffered by child victims.
“When these children are abused it has long-term implications on their lives. It leads to mental instability to some of them, anxieties arise in their lives, some of them even get to the point of adulthood and they still cannot relate as normal people because of the encounters they’ve had,” he noted.
He expressed worry over how such violations have historically been handled, urging the House to treat reported incidents of sexual exploitation with utmost seriousness, in line with Dr. Zanetor’s appeal.
“We don’t have to trivialize them. We don’t have to see them as normal. This House has to take a very important step in ensuring that such matters are properly investigated, we get it to the root of it, we get people punished so that it serves as deterrent to others,” he asserted.
Commending the Ministers of Education and Gender for their swift handling of the recent Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) scandal, Hon. Boamah-Nyarko reiterated that tracking convicted offenders through an official database remains critical. A central register, he argued, would help monitor culprits and prevent them from being placed in environments where they could reoffend.
His comments come as Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu briefed Parliament on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, revealing that investigations into the alleged sexual abuse at Obuasi SHTS are 85 per cent complete.
Addressing the Joint Committee on Human Rights, Gender, and Education, Mr Iddrisu confirmed that the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service is actively handling the criminal elements of the case, with the school’s headteacher, Zakaria Abdulai, facing potential prosecution.
According to the Education Minister, the weight of evidence gathered since the committee was formed on October 14 suggests that a court would establish a prima facie case against the headteacher, with formal court proceedings expected to commence shortly.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
