Obuasi SHTS sex scandal: GES to ban teachers from inviting students to bungalows for household chores

The Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Professor Ernest Kofi Davis, has announced plans to prohibit teachers from inviting students to their bungalows to perform household chores as part of measures to protect students and prevent sexual misconduct in schools.

Professor Davis said the GES would issue a formal directive to schools through regional education directors, reminding teachers of the provisions of the Service’s code of conduct that prohibit students from being asked to undertake domestic duties.

He stressed that teachers were not permitted to use students for household chores and warned that the practice was inconsistent with the professional standards governing educators.

“I agree with those calling for a ban on students going to teachers’ bungalows. We are going to write to schools to make sure that it doesn’t happen because in our code of conduct, in Section 3.7 (V), it is written that the students are not expected to be asked to engage in household chores, so we are going to write to the regional directors on October 23.

“And so I expect the news to get to all regional directors to remind our staff to familiarise themselves with the code of conduct and cease inviting students to do household chores because the code of conduct does not permit that. It is not acceptable.”

Professor Davis made the remarks amid allegations of sexual abuse involving the headmaster of Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS), Zakaria Abdulai.

The planned directive is intended to reinforce existing GES regulations and ensure that teachers maintain appropriate professional boundaries in their interactions with students.