The Executive Director of Child Right International, Appiah Bright, has expressed concern that the Ghana Education Service (GES), does not have the authority to unilaterally dismiss the student who was captured assaulting a colleague, without following the appropriate legal procedures.

Speaking on Kumasi-based Oyerepa TV, the executive director indicated the GES should have allowed the law to take its course to determine whether the students need to be dismissed or otherwise.

“I don’t think dismissing the students should be in the hands of Ghana Education Service to determine that the students are dismissed. It is law, unless the law certifies that the student is dismissed,” he said.

He emphasized that within the juvenile justice system, there are specific processes that need to be followed to establish whether the presence of the students in school poses a threat to others.

“One thing that we should also know is that, within our juvenile justice system, even if a child commits an offense, there are processes of certification to come to the conclusion that the presences of the students in school will pose a threat to other students.

“So, the removal of the child is not based on administrative processes, it’s based on the law of certification. If you say the child should go home, it is based on the mere fact that he assaulted another student or it’s just an exercise you want to put across,” he continued.

The Executive Director Appiah Bright raised concerns that dismissing the students without following the legal protocols might infringe on the student's rights because the GES does not have the power to do so.

“The dismissal is wrong on the bases that there are rules that must be followed to aid certification to that effect. Because the truth of the matter is that GES don’t have the power to ask the child a child to go home,” he added.

NW/OGB
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