Haruna Iddrisu (left) and the Yaa Asantewaa Girls Senior High School student whose haircut sparked the social media protestsÂ
Source: Africa Publicity
Ghana’s Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has warned that students will not be allowed to attend schools with hairstyles or long hair.
His warning comes after Ghanaians took to social media to bring an end to what they consider as “colonial practice” of cutting female students’ hair before they allowed into senior high schools across the country. The social media protests followed came about after a video and photos of a young girl was shared online showing her weeping as her hair was being cut before she could start school at the Yaa Asantewaa Girls Senior High School. Ghanaians believe it’s about time the practice of cutting female students hair was brought to an end.
But speaking at the 75th anniversary celebrations of Mawuli School in the Volta Region over the weekend, Minister Iddrisu directed the Ghana Education Service (GES) and heads of second-cycle schools to take full control of student behavior in schools.
He addressed what he thought to be growing concerns over indiscipline in schools across Ghana.
According to him, schools exist to mould character, not to host beauty contests.
He says “There is an ongoing debate on social media about haircuts and size and lengths of hair in Secondary Schools. We’ll not tolerate today, we’ll not tolerate it tomorrow, in so long as we are moulding character. If we give in to hair today, tomorrow it will be shoes and the next day it will be the way they dressed.”
He added that “There is an ongoing debate on social media about haircuts and size and lengths of hair in Secondary Schools. We’ll not tolerate today, we’ll not tolerate it tomorrow, in so long as we are moulding character. If we give in to hair today, tomorrow it will be shoes and the next day it will be the way they dress.
Therefore as part of our disciplinary measures, Headmasters and GES you’re accordingly empowered to take full control of how students behave on your campuses. So anybody who thinks that your child will walk into any institution of learning, as if that Child was to attend a beauty contest, the school environment is not for that purpose and not cut for that purpose and will not tolerate that as an institution.”
Meanwhile, he cautioned against teachers abusing students.
He says “We will not tolerate indiscipline in our schools, including cases where teachers abuse learners. Any teacher found taking advantage of a student will face strict sanctions.”
