Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has given the Ghana Education Service (GES) full government backing to adopt and enforce a zero-tolerance policy towards criminal conduct in schools.
Speaking at a national conference on tackling indiscipline in schools in Sunyani, Mr Iddrisu said the GES had the authority and support of government to take firm action against students whose behaviour threatens safety in schools.
“Today, you have my authority and support, and that of the President and the State, to declare zero tolerance for criminal conduct,” he said.
He urged the GES not to hesitate in enforcing the policy, assuring the Service that the government would support measures aimed at preventing criminal behaviour from becoming normalised in schools.
“You have no excuse not to let it work, and you have our full support to make it work,” he added.
Mr Iddrisu said criminal conduct had no place in the school environment and warned that tolerating such behaviour could undermine the role of schools as safe spaces for teaching and learning.
“Criminality or criminal conduct should not ever find space in the school environment, and should not ever be tolerated or accommodated,” he said.
He said persistent criminal behaviour could make schools unsafe and affect the quality of learning.
“Because when that happens, then it means the school environment becomes insecure and unsafe, and not good enough for learning,” he added.
The minister’s comments come amid concerns over serious forms of indiscipline in some senior high schools, including gang-related violence, attacks on teachers and other acts of misconduct.
The policy is expected to place greater responsibility on the GES and school authorities to distinguish between routine disciplinary offences and conduct that amounts to criminality.
At the conference, GES Director-General Professor Ernest Kofi Davis also raised concerns about the changing nature of indiscipline in schools.
He said some behaviours previously associated mainly with tertiary institutions were increasingly appearing in senior high schools.
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