Boys and Girls Are Sexually Abused in Our Schools – Parent

It is not only girls who have fallen victim to sexual abuse by their male teachers, boys in senior high school are also going through similar experiences.

According to Life Coach/Counsellor, Amos Kevin-Annan, many boys are quietly enduring harassment from their female teachers at the various levels of their education.

Mr. Kevin-Annan revealed on the Super Morning Show on Joy FM, Thursday, how a female intern posted to a boys’ school where he was receiving his secondary education, made sexual gestures at him.

“When I was in secondary school there was somebody [a female] who came to do attachment and she was preying upon me [her student] as a young boy,” he told show host, Daniel Dadzie while contributing to discussions relating to the sex scandal that has hit Ashanti Region-based Ejisuman Senior High School.

At least eight tutors of the school have been found guilty of sexual misconduct by a special investigative committee set up by the Ghana Education Service after they were accused by 10 of their students of making sexual advancements at them.

A Deputy Education Minister, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, speaking on Joy FM on Wednesday said the implicated teachers, who are already on interdiction, should not be allowed to teach again until their cases are finally determined.

Mr. Amos Kevin-Annan, a father of two daughters, described the phenomenon teachers harassing students sexually as humanity challenge, stressing, in some cases the students who suffer sexual abuse from their teachers groom others as a form of vengeance.

He also shared his experiences from interactions he had with some students who, prior to gaining admission to the university, suffered sexual abuse from their teachers at the basic and secondary school levels.

Most of them, he said, got to the university and easily gave-in to sexual advancements from their lecturers because they think “it’s the norm”.

“It is important that we address it as a humanity challenge so that we can make sure that there is a safety net for both boys and girls,” he counselled.

Strong lyrical content

Speaking on the same programme, gender advocate, Dinah Adiko, suggested that strong sexual language of some popular Ghanaian songs, are to blame for the increase in sexual abuse cases in the country.

“The lyrics of our music condoles very strong sexual language…but we all have accepted it,” Ms. Adiko noted

Advancing her arguments, Dinah observed songs produced by artistes in recent times are filled with “that enforcement around us that suggest that women are supposed to be available for men”, which waters the grounds for violations to occur.

The gender advocate cited commercials being aired on traditional and social media platforms about some items particularly aphrodisiacs which she said carry the suggestion that “men are entitled to [women], men cannot do without [women]…and there’s a system that says ‘support them to fulfil their desires and their needs and let them be happy’.”

She, therefore, urged the public to shun musical content with lyrics that support the violation of the rights of girls because “it is no more funny [and] it’s not acceptable.”

Emefa Marfo, another parent, connected the rise in the incidents of sexual abuse with the way most children are raised in a typical Ghanaian setting, where the “child is to be seen and not to be heard”.

“A lot of children are brought up not being assertive, our children brought up to keep quiet and not tell on each other and we grow up as adults having this put in our minds.

“And so when something untoward happens to anybody we don’t feel free at will to speak about it and we want to hide it,” Emefa added.

Listen to an excerpt of the discussion which included studio guest, Yasmine Alhassan.

Source: Myjoyonline