The Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) subject is unsurprisingly on fire across the country and the reason is not far-fetched.
We predicted that the subject would be politicized massively and we have not been wrong. What a quarry for exploitation by a desperate National Democratic Congress (NDC) as we have observed in the past few days.
The subject is but a minute segment of the general curriculum review of the country but the ‘choose and pick’ preference is not doing us any good at all at this stage.
A two or so year old video recording has gone viral and powered by the NDC propaganda because it feeds into their narrative of the CSE narrative.
Much as we do not subscribe to the subject, we would be quick to oppose the lies being peddled by the NDC to the effect that the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) has a hidden LGBT agenda to prosecute.
It is unfair even criminal to arrange children and have one of them pose a question which in its obscene state only muddies the water and provides fodder for those intent on destroying the subject being reviewed now.
It is our position that those behind the floating of the said videos and (they appear to be teachers) must be identified and apprehended.
It is gladdening that the Ministry of Education has issued a statement which sufficiently allays the fears being expressed by various interest groups.
Considering the contents of the statement, we are at a loss as to why political groups and others would want to peddle inaccuracies.
The way we do politics in this country leaves too much to be desired. We have even sighted statements from otherwise respectable organizations, with some claiming to write on behalf of highly placed faith persons in the country.
The contents of these statements are clearly the manifestations of the political inclinations of the assigns of the exalted persons.
When such misinformation crops up it opens the floodgates for so-called advocates of morality who need lessons on the subject themselves anyway to start firing their veiled invective.
Let them read and make research on subjects before jumping into the fray as they have been doing for the past few days.
Government actors are parents themselves and belong to the various faiths. They would definitely champion the cause of something evil and in opposition to our values and faiths anyway.
The Education Ministry too did not do well with the subject. Why did it have to wait for the mischievous politicians in the various departments, some of them religious, to start their campaign on behalf of the opposition party before releasing the explanation? Did it underrate the deviousness of the opposition party?
We are constrained to say ‘shame unto them’ who peddled the misinformation. They sought to give a non-existing dog a bad name so they could hang it. Such a useless enterprise!
Sex for grade
The sex scandal which has hit the country’s premier university is not a thing to be glossed over.
This is a sad occurrence in the history of tertiary education in the country and it calls for a moral auditing of other tertiary institutions in the country.
The phenomenon has been ongoing for a while now but with no concrete or even verifiable evidence it fizzles under the cloak of hearsay.
Female students bold enough to talk about it to their mates have narrated their ordeals at the hands of bad randy lecturers.
As Ghanaians, our hearts are broken because some of the suspects in the scandal are known visages in the media plane, their incessant and cacophonous pontifications on political scandals presenting them as better personalities for the position of minister or even president.
Now that they have shown their worth or unworthiness, we now know better why we should listen to such persons with a pinch of salt.
Imagine paying so much to have your daughter educated only for such moral predators to pounce upon them using enhanced exam grades as baits.
What moral authority do such persons have to come and pontificate about the politician-created challenges in society? Of course, none!
The moral decadence on the university campuses especially the public ones should be tackled now, lest it gains such a foothold it could be almost impossible to eradicate.
A few months ago, the University of Ghana was at the centre of a reprimand in what the accuser said was a lowering of standards at the tertiary institution. While we did not agree with the unnecessary polemics we are tempted to fret about the possibility of the sex-for-grades scandal feeding into that narrative. The attacker could easily smile and say to himself “I told you so.”
We are concerned about the diminished aura of the premier university and like other Ghanaians we ask that something is done about this scandal now.
The truth must be out. Suspects who have been cited in the scandal must be given the opportunity to talk because we think that this way so much can be gleaned about the blemish which is threatening the integrity of our tertiary system.
The university authorities must act now to restore the image of the University of Ghana and as we said earlier this scandal is not limited to the premier tertiary institution.
We must look beyond the tip of the iceberg if we want to do an effective job at reversing this image dent.
