We’ve lost it as a nation—GNAT reacts to Accra Academy cutlass-flogging incident
The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has reacted to the viral video about a student flogging two other students at the Accra Academy Senior High School.
This situation has raised more concerns among stakeholders, with the GNAT calling for a reform to curb inhumane acts in various schools.
Speaking in an interview, Thomas Musah, the General Secretary of the association said, “As a nation, character and conscience, we have lost it. We are now training people with knowledge, but for their character and conscience, we have lost it”.
He recalled a time when schools upheld strict disciplinary measures, and teachers wielded authority without fear of backlash.
“When I was in elementary school, the headteacher was so empowered that no student could misbehave in the school. Parents could even come into the schools and report their wards to the teachers. Teachers, at the time, were empowered,” he noted.
However, Mr. Musah indicated that the situation has changed, as teachers now operate in fear of retaliation from both students and parents.
“Today, teachers have been disabled. There are instances where when things happen at the school, the children will go and inform their parents, and they will come to the school and beat up the teacher, he lamented.
“So, when things happen, the teachers cannot talk because when they do, either the students or the parents will come after you”.
“It looks like nobody cares, and we are saying that it is free for all. The earlier we come together and empower the headteachers and school administrators like it used to be, the better for all of us,” he added.
Meanwhile, the management of Accra Academy has handed over the student involved in a bullying incident to the police for the necessary action to be taken.