JoyNews investigative correspondent Manasseh Azure Awuni has confirmed that he has been sued for defamation by the interdicted headmaster of Obuasi Senior High Technical School, Zakaria Abdulai, over allegations of sexual abuse involving female students.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Thursday, October 22, Mr Azure said the lawsuit was the 12th defamation case filed against him since 2015.
“That is defamation suit number 12 since 2015, and I think my lawyers will handle that,” he said.
The lawsuit follows Mr Azure’s investigative report, Inside the Dreaded Headmaster’s Bungalow, which exposed allegations of sexual abuse, including rape, involving the headmaster and female students at the school.
The Ghana Education Service interdicted Mr Abdulai following the revelations, pending investigations into the allegations.
More Read
The report also raised concerns about the handling of some of the alleged cases, indicating that although some had been reported to the police, investigations had been slow or stalled.
It further alleged that some teachers, education authorities and political figures had failed to fulfil their responsibilities, resulting in pressure and victimisation against staff members seeking justice for the affected students.
Mr Azure specifically referred to the school’s focal person, the girl-child coordinator and others who he said had faced pressure for pursuing the cases.
“There were things they were supposed to do that they didn’t do, and because of that there was a lot of pressure and victimisation against the focal person, the girl-child coordinator and those who were bent on getting justice for these girls,” he said.
Following the report, Mr Abdulai, who served as the National Democratic Congress (NDC) secretary for the Juaben Constituency, withdrew from the contest for constituency chairman amid the controversy.
Meanwhile, the Police Criminal Investigations Department has confirmed that the docket on the case has been forwarded to the Attorney-General for advice.
