Pressure group OccupyGhana has weighed into the controversy surrounding the recent decision by the Ghana Education Service (GES) to dismiss some eight girls from Chiana Senior High School.
The eight were captured in a viral video, insulting the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
They have since apologised for the act.
After weeks of investigations into the video, its source and motivation of the girls to record such act, GES dismissed them.
But many have found the punishment as too harsh.
One among these many is OccupyGhana.
“We agree that what the students did and said were terrible and despicable, directed at anyone, let alone the person who holds the high office of President,” a statement issued on Thursday admitted.
“Our culture and traditions frown upon such conduct. Therefore, we cannot fault the GES if it decides to discipline the errant students.
“However, we live in a liberal democracy that requires us to be tolerant and not completely overreact in situations like this.”
The group, therefore, asked GES to respectfully reconsider its decisions, especially when a human rights lawyer like Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is President of Ghana.
“It is in line with this spirit of forbearance and tolerance that the current President, then as Attorney-General, introduced in and shepherded through Parliament, a Bill that famously repealed several sections of the Criminal Offences Act that criminalised speech, including the then offence of ‘insulting the president’.”
Already, the Minority in Parliament has asked the authorities to rescind the decision and rather proffer alternative but corrective punishment to the students.