Child Rights International seeks justice for deceased SHS student
Child Rights International (CRI), a child-centred NGO, is to seek justice for the deceased student of Ghana National College in Cape Coast, in the Central Region, and his family.
Advertisement
In that regard, it has forwarded a petition it received from the Adadzi family of Anomabo over the death of their son, Theophilus Ansah,18, to its team of lawyers who are studying it for further action.
The Executive Director of CRI, Bright Kweku Appiah, who made this known at a media briefing in Accra, said: “At the appropriate time we will also announce the action we are going to take with respect to the matter”.
“As an organisation, we are not really looking at the family as the point of reference, but at a situation where we can make the school environment conducive so that we do not record any of such cases when it comes to the welfare of children,” he said.
Background
Theophilus Ansah, a Form Three Science student of Afedu House at the Ghana National College, died at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital on July 6, 2024, after he was referred from the Ewim Government Hospital.
The family, however, suspect that Ansah died as a result of negligence of the school authority.
Concerns
Mr Appiah further expressed concern at the number of deaths recorded in senior high schools, adding “from February 2024 to July 2024, we have recorded four deaths in our SHS due to medical negligence.
“And over the years, within a period of 2021 to date, we have recorded about 11 cases of children who died as a result of negligence, especially in boarding schools,” he said.
Other Trending Stories
Mr Appiah, who described the situation as alarming, said having a comprehensive system to deal with issues of welfare and well-being of children should be a matter of priority.
He said the country’s education strategic plan was not only about students learning in the classroom, but also about protecting their rights and making the environment conducive for learning.
Quoting a court ruling in a similar case of one Kervin of the Achimota School to buttress his point, Mr Appiah said, once a child found him or herself in a school environment, it was the responsibility of the school to provide care for the child.
Issuance of exeats
On issuance of exeats, the Executive Director said there was no clear policy or guidelines regarding its operationalisation in schools, thus leaving its issuance to the discretion of the system.
“We think that issuance of exeat should have a regulation, and circumstances under which it must be issued should cut across.
“Some exeats that have been reviewed clearly shows it is not even consistent with the regulation of the Ghana Education Service,” he said, adding that management of schools must consider the best interest of children rather than the dignity and reputation of their schools.