Minority appeals to President to pardon dismissed students of Chiana SHS 

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Parliamentary Minority Caucus has appealed to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to use his good office to pardon the eight dismissed students of Chiana Senior High School (SHS). 

The eight students were dismissed by the Ghana Education Service (GES) for insulting the President. 

A statement issued by Mr Peter Nortsu-Kotoe, the NDC Member of Parliament (MP) for Akatsi North and Ranking Member, Parliament’s Education Commitment, which was copied to the Ghana News Agency said the Minority was appealing to the President, to use his good offices to pardon these students as he did in 2020 when a group of some students misconducted themselves towards him.  

It said in this age and time when there was increased advocacy and renewed focus on increasing access to education, any decision that takes a child away from the classroom can only be seen as an absolute drawback to this renewed focus and objective.  

“It is, therefore, regrettable to learn of the decision of the GES to dismiss the eight female students of the Chiana SHS in the Kassena Nankana West District of the Upper East Region for insulting the President of the Republic some months ago,” the statement said. 

“Whereas the Minority is against the misconduct of the eight students, and condemns same, we wish to state that the decision by the GES to dismiss them is harsh and retrogressive. 

“We believe the eight students like every other Ghanaian child deserve to be in school in line with Article 25 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana and also Goal (4) of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.” 

The statement said it was in view of this, that the NDC Minority Caucus was calling on the GES to review its decision and to ensure that the education of the victims was not truncated in this manner. 

“We are also by this statement, urging the GES to proffer an alternative but corrective punishment to the eight students,” it said. 

“This we believe would be in the best interest of our collective goal to ensuring that every Ghanaian child has access to formal education.” 

Source: GNA