The Chief Executive Officer of Neogenics Education Group, Grant Bulmuo, says debates over inclusivity in schools, as in the case of Wesley Girls’ High School, is a symptom of a lack of quality in schools across the board.
“One of the reasons why are having these arguments is because we don’t have the same quality of education across the country,” he said on The Big Issue.
“Usually, schools that have issues with minority groups are schools that are oversubscribed schools”
Schools like Wesley Girls’ High School and Achimota Senior High School, which are among the most prestigious in Ghana, have faced criticism for their handling of minority religions.
Wesley Girls’ High School is not allowing Muslim students to fast during Ramadan, whilst Achimota Senior High School refused to admit two Rastafari students.
The case of alleged discrimination at Achimota School has resulted in legal action against the school’s management and the Ghana Education Service.
Mr. Bulmuo feels these tensions would be avoided if there was more parity in schools.
“If those schools were not oversubscribed, they would not be dealing with rasta hair. They would not be dealing with whether this person is Hindu or Christian.”
“The issue is because we have not ensured that the same quality is across the board in our country,” he said.
This notwithstanding, there are critics who feel this is no excuse for the likes of Wesley Girls’ High School and Achimota Senior High School.
Also speaking on The Big Issue, a former Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Charles Aheto-Tsegah said the Ghana Education needed to be firm with the schools, who he feels are on the wrong side of the argument.
“When you have all these small pockets of trouble causers, then you need to deal with them… I am very surprised the GES is becoming very soft with this,” he stated.