Kumasi Wesley Girls High School Students Punished   14-Apr-2013

Twelve students of the Kumasi Wesley Girls High School have been deboardinised, following their alleged involvement in acts of lesbianism. The decision was taken by the authorities after they conducted investigation into the activities of the students which confirmed the practice. The activities of the students were said to have come to the notice of the school’s authorities in November, 2012. However, what finally exposed them was when they attempted to lure a fresh student into their fold. Some of the students were found to have written love letters to attract their fellows to practice lesbianism. The authorities declined to disclose the identities of the students but said their behaviour was against the rules and ethics of the school. According to the officials of the Ghana Education Service (GES), the students confessed to have engaged in acts of lesbianism when they were exposed by other students. The Ashanti Regional Director of Education, Mr Kofi Safo Kantanka, in an interview with the Daily Graphic yesterday said the action against the students was in line with the code of conduct governing senior high schools. He underscored the need for students to conform to the norms of boarding house, failure which would result in the necessary punishment. Mr Kantanka said the disciplinary action against the students would serve as a deterrent to other students in the country, adding that reported acts of lesbianism in second cycle institutions must be strongly condemned. Cases of lesbianism and homosexuality in second cycle institutions in the country are gaining currency, a development which has caused concern about the clergy in particular and the citizenry at large. According to Mr Kantanka, allowing such students to continue to stay in the boarding houses in spite of their conduct would in the final analysis influence other innocent students. He explained that withdrawing the students would break their front and also immobilise them from continuing to engage in such acts. He said the school, being a Methodist oriented school, had put together a team of counselors to help the students. Mr Kantanka pleaded with parents to partner school authorities to instil discipline in the students rather than leave that responsibility in the hands of teachers alone. He urged the students in other institutions to concentrate on their studies and not to allow themselves to be deceived into engaging in acts that had the tendency to ruin their education.