Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has called on the Ghana Education Service (GES) to report allegations of sexual abuse in schools to the police at the earliest opportunity, warning that lengthy internal procedures could jeopardise investigations and destroy vital evidence.
Azure said cases involving alleged rape or sexual abuse should not be handled through prolonged administrative processes before police involvement. He stressed the need for prompt police reports and medical examinations to support possible prosecutions.
“This is a criminal matter, to hell with those protocols. Get that child to the police first, get her a police report, a medical report, and that can preserve very vital pieces of evidence that would be needed during the prosecution,” he said.
The remarks were made on the sidelines of the 3rd Samira Bawumia Literature Prize Awards Ceremony, where Azure was asked about developments following allegations of sexual abuse involving female students of Obuasi Senior High Technical School.
His comments follow his investigative documentary, Inside the Dreaded Headmaster’s Bungalow, which exposed allegations of sexual abuse involving students of the school and its headmaster, Zakaria Abdulai. Azure said the incident should serve as a wake‑up call for the GES, adding that he had received reports of similar cases in which teachers and headteachers were allegedly impregnating students under their care.
He urged the public to look beyond the political debate surrounding demonstrations over the Obuasi case and focus on securing justice for the alleged victims. The girls had reportedly raised concerns for more than a year without being heard, making public demands for justice an important part of efforts to ensure accountability.
“I want us to go beyond the politics and demand true accountability from the police who are doing the investigation and the prosecution, the Attorney‑General’s Department, and also from the GES,” he said.
