The Ghana Education Service (GES) has warned parents against paying middlemen popularly known as “goro boys” who promise to secure senior high school placements for their children, describing them as criminals and scammers.

GES Head of Public Relations, Daniel Fenyi, said parents struggling with the self-placement process should seek help through official channels instead of relying on middlemen.

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Speaking on GhanaWeb TV’s Lowdown show, he said the Service had no dealings with such individuals.

“They are criminals. They are scammers. We don't work with them. We don't know them,” he stated.

Fenyi warned parents against engaging people who claim they could influence the placement process for a fee.

“If you pay your money to these people and they run away with it, it becomes unfortunate,” he said.

He urged parents and students facing self-placement difficulties to visit their former school heads, district education offices, or designated resolution centres for assistance.

The GES official explained that the resolution centres were established to help parents and students resolve placement challenges, including difficulties navigating the computer system.

“Don't engage them at all. Go to the resolution centre. A lot of our staff, official staff members, are there to handle your cases,” he added.

Fenyi also appealed to parents who had already fallen victim to the alleged scammers to provide information that could help the authorities trace them.

He said such details could include phone numbers, names, payment information and photographs or other identification details of the individuals involved.

However, he lamented that some victims were unwilling to provide the information needed to support investigations.

“Unfortunately, when you reach out, many parents are not willing; many students are not willing to give you those details,” he said.

Fenyi maintained that parents should use the official GES channels to address placement concerns rather than risk losing money to unapproved intermediaries.

NA/VPO