The Ghana Education Service (GES) committee that investigated the August 2026 disturbances at Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) in the Ashanti Region has concluded that sexual abuse allegations against the school’s headmaster, Zakaria Abdulai, were not substantiated by the evidence presented.
The finding was contained in a report by a nine-member committee established to investigate the circumstances surrounding a student demonstration at the school on Tuesday, August 4, 2026.
According to the report, the committee received information from the school’s Safe Space Focal Person indicating that 16 girls had allegedly been involved in sexual harassment cases concerning the headmaster.
The committee invited all 16 students to provide their accounts, but only four appeared before it.
Of the four students who attended, one denied the allegations, while the other three initially described conduct they considered to constitute sexual harassment. Their accounts included allegations of hugging and a kiss on the cheek.
The committee also identified an inconsistency in one student’s account regarding whether she had performed duties for the headmaster.
After assessing the information presented, the committee concluded that there was insufficient evidence to substantiate the allegations involving the headmaster and the students who appeared before it.
“On the evidence available to it, the Committee therefore found that the allegation of sexual harassment between the Headmaster and any of the girls who appeared before the Committee was not substantiated,” the report stated.
Despite its conclusion on the allegations, the committee raised concerns about professional boundaries between the headmaster and students, as well as the manner in which school authorities handled the matter.
The report noted that the headmaster admitted that students performed cleaning duties at his residence. He, however, maintained that the work was limited to the exterior of the house and that housemistresses were responsible for assigning the students.
The investigation formed part of a broader inquiry into the unrest that erupted at the school on August 4, following the discovery of what was suspected to be a foetus on the school compound.
Meanwhile, the GES has constituted a separate committee to investigate fresh allegations highlighted by JoyNews in a subsequent investigation.
The development follows a JoyNews report that prompted renewed scrutiny of the headmaster’s conduct. The GES has also interdicted Abdulai pending further investigation.
The earlier committee’s findings relate to the evidence it gathered during its inquiry into the August disturbances, while the newly constituted committee is expected to examine the fresh allegations separately.
Also, Jacob Anaba, the President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), has revealed that 38 teachers at Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) have been targeted after they spoke against headmaster Zakaria Abdulai, amid allegations of sexual abuse involving female students.
According to the NAGRAT President, 38 teachers at Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) were asked to leave the school.
He argued that the development raised serious questions about how complaints against the headmaster had been handled.
Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express on October 19, the NAGRAT President stated, “As I speak to you, 38 teachers were being asked to leave the school. What was the reason?”
He alleged that the development follows the work of a fact-finding committee chaired by the district director of education.
Jacob Anaba stated, “It was the wrath of the students that brought this thing into the public domain. It happened earlier before that. It happened earlier before that”.
“He knew about it. What measures did he take? He never. He allowed this thing to happen,” Mr Anaba alleged.
“You see, this Ghana belongs to all of us. We have to protect the Ghana that we all belong to,” he said.
“So, if a member of us, a teacher, does the wrong thing, he must be taken through the due course of the law. No one should be shielded. No one,” he demanded.
He further called for decisive action against the headmaster, saying, “This man should leave immediately. He can’t be a teacher again, because the profession that we decide to belong to is a noble one”.
“You have a fiduciary relationship with the student that you are handling. We may make mistakes, but not this type of mistake,” he said.
@ghnow_ The aunt of Nana Yaw, popularly known as Terry/Dinero, has vowed to summon those accused of killing him before the water gods to face spiritual consequences. #GHNow #fyp ♬ sonido original – el copaneco
@ghnow_ Emotional scenes at the Teshie District Court as a friend of Nana Yaw, popularly known as Terry/Dinero, breaks down in tears during proceedings in the murder case. #GHNow #fyp ♬ original sound – Kofi Kinaata
