Prosecute teacher for impregnating pupil - Okyenhene

Kibi (E/R), May 21, GNA - The Okyenhene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori-Panin on Saturday appealed to the Ministry of Education to institute legal action against Richard Amfo Okyere, the dismissed teacher of Akim Sankubenase Catholic Junior Secondary School (JSS), who impregnated his 13 year old pupil.

He said dismissal alone was not enough and such people do not deserve to teach any child at any level of education. Osagyefuo Ofori-Panin made the appeals at the first congress of Old Students of Abuakwa State College (OSASCO) at Kibi. The school was established in 1936.

He asked the Management of the College to strictly enforce the rules and regulations to instil discipline in the students. Osagyefuo Ofori Panin advised the students that no matter the efforts that would be made to improve upon the facilities in the school and provide them with all their needs, they would not achieve the desired results if they were not disciplined and sat down to learn.

He said the Akyem Abuakwa Traditional Council in consultation with the OSASCO, the Parent Teachers Association and the management of the school would do their best to resolve the problems currently facing the school.

Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas, a Deputy Minister of Education urged all Ghanaians to support the Ghana Education Trust Fund, when it is formally launched to enable the government to give credible support to needy but brilliant students and to improve existing conditions in educational institutions in the country.

Dr Chambas explained that the fund would ameliorate the present huge shortfall in the funding of education, which is the root cause of the constant ritual of strikes and boycotts in tertiary institutions in the country. He expressed the hope that the fund would continue to enjoy the bi-partisan support when the Bill goes to Parliament for debate.

He urged all alumni of various educational institutions in the country to contribute to their alma mater to enable the schools to maintain and improve upon their standards.

Dr Chambas advised those educational institutions, which have not yet formed old boys and girls associations to do so as soon as practicable to help beef up what the district assemblies, traditional authorities, religious organisations and some non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are already contributing to the schools.

He reminded the old students that by contributing to the development of their alma maters, they would be contributing to the maintenance and expansion of the facilities they used when they were students.

That would enable others to also have access to them so that they might also grow up to be useful and productive citizens of the country. The Deputy Minister urged other traditional authorities to emulate the Okyenehene and the Asantehene, Nana Osei Tutu II in establishing educational endowment funds to improve upon education in their respective traditional areas.

Mr A. Appiah-Menka, National President of OSASCO, called for the restructuring and review of the constitution of the association to enable all old students of the school to develop a sense of pride of being an OSASCO. He called for the development of a hall of fame in the school, where pictures of illustrious old students could be displayed.

Dr Job Thomas Dakwa, Chairman of the newly installed Board of Directors of the College, said the Board has strengthened the hand of the school administrators to enforce the rules and regulations of the school to instil discipline and call for the support of the school's PTA.

He said, as a result of the desire of the school to instil discipline the Board had approved of the dismissal of 20 students of the school this year for various offences.

Mr K. Antwi-Dako, Headmaster of the school observed that, the recent results of the school have not been encouraging. He complained of shortage of accommodation for teachers, lack of transport for the school and inadequate toilet facilities for the students and appealed for the support of OSASCO.

Earlier, in a welcoming address, Dr Aaron Offei, Chairman of the Eastern Region Branch of the OSASCO, called on all members of the association to contribute their time and money to help reverse the deterioration of facilities at the school.