….Muntaka confirms his arrest over alleged abuse of female students
The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service has taken steps to obtain DNA evidence in the investigation into alleged sexual misconduct involving the headmaster of Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS), Zakaria Abdulai.
Interior Minister Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka disclosed on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, that the headmaster had been arrested and that investigators were pursuing forensic evidence to establish the facts surrounding the allegations.
Speaking before Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Mr Muntaka said the matter had been escalated from the Ashanti Regional level to Police Headquarters in Accra following a report received by the CID on September 7.
“We’ve been able to get one of the ladies, maybe I shouldn’t be putting so much information out. About semen, we are getting DNA… So, what is happening is that this gentleman has been arrested. He’s going through the due process,” he said.
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The minister explained that investigators were considering DNA analysis as part of efforts to establish the circumstances surrounding the allegations. He said the police would require the appropriate court authorization before collecting a DNA sample from the headmaster, in accordance with the law.
Mr Muntaka stressed that Mr Abdulai remained presumed innocent until proven guilty and would have the opportunity to respond to the allegations as investigations continued.
He also expressed confidence in the CID Director-General, COP Lydia Yaako Donkor, assuring the committee that the matter would not be swept under the carpet.
The PAC Chairperson and Member of Parliament for Atiwa East, Abena Osei-Asare, has urged the Interior Minister to ensure that the investigation proceeds without further delay and that all those found culpable are held accountable.
She expressed concern about the treatment of female students and other young people who might have been affected by the allegations.
“We haven’t been fair to our young ladies. This shouldn’t happen anywhere,” she said.
Mrs Osei-Asare questioned the time taken to address the matter and called on the relevant security agencies to take the necessary action.
“This issue has been on the table for how long? What is being done?” she asked.
She also criticised Mr Abdulai’s decision to seek another political position while the allegations remained unresolved, referring to his bid to contest the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Juaben Constituency chairmanship.
The headmaster resigned as the constituency secretary and withdrew from the chairmanship race on Tuesday after the party directed him to step aside to allow investigations to proceed without hindrance.
Mrs Osei-Asare said the withdrawal followed public pressure over the allegations.
“Minister, you have the security agencies under your watch, and I know you are a man of your words. Let’s do the needful and don’t let us fail our young ladies and society as well,” she urged.
The President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Jacob Anaba, has accused the NDC of failing to act promptly on the allegations, claiming that party officials knew about the matter before it attracted widespread public attention.
Speaking on JoyNews’ Top Story programme on Tuesday, Mr Anaba described the party’s decision
to direct Mr Abdulai to step aside from the constituency chairmanship race as “very, very late”.
He argued that action should have been taken when the allegations first emerged rather than after the controversy had become a national issue.
Mr Anaba referred to claims contained in an investigative video by journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni, including an allegation that the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) had visited the school at night to collect a girl who had reportedly been assaulted.
He said the housemistress had invited the student, but the claims about the alleged incident and the extent of the party’s prior knowledge have not been independently established.
“So, the NDC was aware of the actions of this man in the school. So, they should have taken immediate steps to stop this thing when it started happening,” he said.
“We cannot allow people like this to be in charge of our kids in our school. The school must be safe for all of our kids, boys and girls,” he added.
Mr Anaba further alleged that 38 teachers at the school, including a teacher who reported concerns about the matter, were targeted for transfer by the district director following events that led to the school’s closure in August.
According to him, students were sent home on August 4, after which a committee was established to investigate the allegations.
He claimed that the committee exonerated the headmaster after a few weeks of investigations.
Mr Anaba said the assistant headmaster subsequently informed teachers that the district director had directed their transfers.
“One of them is the focal person in the school who actually picked up this issue and made a report,” he said.
He added that the teachers remained at post while the issues were being investigated.
The NAGRAT president also said some students had confided in teachers they trusted, while others had submitted letters to the district director, regional director and housemistress.
His allegations have raised further questions about how complaints of sexual misconduct in schools are handled and whether staff and students who report suspected abuse receive adequate protection.
The Ghana Education Service (GES) has directed the Ashanti Regional Director of Education and the Obuasi East Municipal Director of Education to step aside while investigations continue.
The directive is intended to prevent interference, or the perception of interference, in the process.
Mr Abdulai remains interdicted, while the Education Ministry has directed the CID to investigate the allegations.
The case has generated national concern, with 16 students reportedly alleging abuse involving the headmaster.
Mr Abdulai has said he intends to pursue all lawful avenues to clear his name.
