Education Think Tank, Africa Education Watch, has defended the decision by the Ghana Education Service (GES), to dismiss some eight students of Chiana Senior High School in the Kassena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region.

The eight female students were dismissed for making derogatory comments against President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in a viral video.

Following their misconduct, the Management of the GES at the national level, in a statement, condemned the act and apologised to the President on behalf of the students, school and members of the public.

However, after extensive investigations into the conduct of the students, the Director General of the Ghana Education Service, Dr Eric Nkansah in a letter dated November 29, 2022, directed the dismissal of all eight students from the school.

The decision has sparked various discussions on social media with some describing the decision as harsh.

Speaking on the Citi Prime News on Thursday, the Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare, said the decision by the GES was justified and necessary to maintain discipline in various senior high schools across the country.

“Teachers and school managers who have the responsibility of running Basic schools must run them effectively and deliver to generate a quality outcome and so when such rules are broken by students, the sanctions must apply so that we don’t create a situation that our schools become a den of indiscipline.”

“And so I have no reason not to support the decision to sanction the students for participating in that despicable act of misconduct. I think that we shouldn’t encourage that behaviour at all in our schools.”