Cape Coast, July 11, GNA - Reverend Dennis Boadu, Guidance and Counseling Officer at the Mfantsipim School, has expressed concern about increasing incidence of "telephone sex" among students in second cycle schools.

He said this had become more alarming due to the free night mobile phone calls.

Rev Boadu said "telephone sex" involves the mutter of sexually arousing sounds or a conversation between two parties on phone and that gang rape, homosexuality and lesbianism are other sexual issues confronting most students in the country. Rev. Boadu said this at a day's workshop in Cape Coast for Guidance and Counseling Coordinators in second cycle schools and District Education offices in the Central Region.

The workshop was organized by the Counseling Unit of the Central Region Education office under the theme: "Equipping Guidance and Counseling Coordinators to Handle Key Current Issues Facing the Students Today".

Rev Boadu said moral decadence among the youth had become so serious that boys instead of shying away would now brag of the numerous sexual affairs they have engaged in. Most of them would be found with girls' photographs in the first page of their note books.

On drug abuse, Rev Boadu said drug addiction was no longer a problem for boys alone but some girls are also engaged in it. "Apart from the students peddling the drugs themselves, other teachers and staff on campus such as the kitchen hands, barbers, and shoemakers also sell the drugs to students."

He said the student drug addicts had resorted to the use of oil produced out of the drugs called "sashes oil" and brewing of drugs into drinks in order to make it difficult for school authorities to detect them.

Rev Boadu appealed to parents, guidance and counseling coordinators and civil society groups to brace themselves up to help stem immorality among the youth.

Touching on "sakawa" and occultism in schools, Nana Yaw Offei Awuku, National Schools Ministry Coordinator of the Scripture Union-Ghana, said occultism was a major global phenomenon which is difficult to tackle and is also far beyond what rational evidence could help address.

"Sakawa," Nana Awuku said, began as cyber fraud, moved to the use of spells to charm victims before reaching the current stage of blood money and advised the counselors to suspect students who use strange symbols, candles and objects as engaging in occultism.

Nana Awuku said research conducted in Akrofi Christaller Institute at Akropong in October 2006 revealed that out of 50 students involved in occultism, 56 per cent of them said they were engaged in medicinal occultism, 30 per cent in magic and 14 percent in divination. She said 40 per cent of the students said they got into it for protection, 10 per cent for powers, 30 per cent for success, 04 per cent to threaten colleagues and 6 per cent for love.

Rev Professor Joseph Kwesi Essuman, former Head of the Counseling Unit of the University of Cape Coast, advised parents to strictly monitor and supervise their children to prevent them from engaging in such vices.

Mrs Gladys Micah, Regional Guidance and Counseling Co-coordinator, called on the Ghana Education Service to provide funds to schools to enable them use counseling to stem the social canker.