A fact-finding mission, led by the Deputy Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) in charge of Management Services, Stephen Kwaku Owusu, yesterday visited the Ghana Senior High School (GHANASCO) in Tamale, following reports of a toilet facility being converted into a dormitory to house some students of the school.
The visit was to assess the accommodation situation, as well as get firsthand information on the report of a toilet cubicle being used as a dormitory.
Over the weekend, a video which showed students sleeping in toilet cubicles went viral, causing outrage on social media and raising concerns over the safety and well-being of the students.
Investigations
Following the incident, the GES last Sunday directed the headmaster and the senior housemaster of the school to step aside to allow for investigations into the matter.
The GES, in a statement, expressed shock at the report and said it was unacceptable for students to sleep at such a place.
It said the school had excess capacity to even house an extra 300 students, with only 1,467 out of the 1,790 vacancies declared by the school being filled.
It further directed the Northern Regional Director of Education to investigate the matter and report back in two weeks.
Located at Kukuo, a suburb of the Tamale metropolis, the school is not fully fenced, resulting in some people trespassing the campus with impunity every day, a situation which has heightened insecurity in the school.
During the visit, the delegation interacted with staff and students of the school. They also assessed the dormitory facilities and the said toilet facility which was purported to have been used to house some students.
The Daily Graphic observed that there were a number of dormitories in the school which were not in use, as it currently runs a transitional track system. Some of the dormitories are not full to capacity and others are not in use at all.
For instance, a newly constructed GETFund dormitory block which has the capacity to house about 800 students is currently under-utilised.
Also, it was observed that the said toilet facility was uncompleted and had never been put to use, as had been reported in the video.
However, some chop boxes, mattresses, books and other personal belongings of the students were found in the cubicles of the facility.
Refuting claims
Meanwhile, the authorities of the school have refuted reports that some students were using toilet cubicles as dormitories.
SOURCE: GRAPHICONLINE
