Obuasi SHTS headmaster accused of molesting students ordered to withdraw from NDC primaries

Zakaria Abdulai, the headmaster of Obuasi Senior High and Technical School, who has been accused of abusing female students at the school, has been ordered to withdraw from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) primaries for the Juaben constituency in the Ashanti Region.

Zakaria Abdulai, who is the ruling party’s General Secretary for the Juaben constituency, had filed his nomination to contest for the party’s chairmanship position in the constituency.

According to award-winning investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni, whose exposé led to the interdiction of the headmaster, the NDC has now ordered Zakaria to withdraw from the election.

Manasseh, who shared these details in a Facebook post on October 18, 2026, added that the party had told the headmaster that if he failed to withdraw from the race, he would be disqualified.

“The NDC has ordered the Obuasi SHTS headmaster, Zakaria Abdulai, to withdraw from the Juaben chairmanship race or be disqualified,” he wrote.

14 Students,1 Headmaster: Details of Manasseh’s Obuasi SHS sexual abuse exposé

Details of the exposé:

Speaking in an interview on JoyNews on October 13, 2026, Manasseh said that 14 female students of Obuasi SHTS had claimed that they were sexually abused by the school’s headmaster over the past year.

The journalist described the situation as particularly disturbing because the alleged incidents were reportedly known to several people and institutions expected to intervene, yet no decisive action appeared to have been taken for an extended period.

“The very disturbing aspect of the case is that it wasn’t really hidden,” he said, explaining that people in Obuasi, including those expected to act on the complaints, were aware of the allegations.

Manasseh said that the Municipal Education Directorate had been aware of complaints against the headmaster, who has now been interdicted.

He disclosed that the Municipal Education Director told him that five girls had reported to the directorate in March 2026, alleging that they had been sexually assaulted by the headmaster.

According to Manasseh, the director said he had fallen ill at the time, and the investigation into the complaints did not proceed.

The journalist further alleged that another incident occurred in June, while a female student reportedly reported being raped by the same headmaster in July.

These incidents, he said, formed part of a series of complaints that had allegedly been raised over the past year and a half without an adequate response.

Manasseh also said that teachers responsible for girl-child education and safeguarding at the school had written several letters and petitions concerning the alleged abuse.

Manasseh said that his investigation found that awareness of the allegations extended beyond the school to the municipal education authorities and other stakeholders.

BAI

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