Wesley Girls Old Students Association Defends School Over Fasting Brouhaha

The Old Students Association of the Wesley Girls Senior High School has taken sides with school authorities in the furore over a disallowance of some Muslim students of the school from fasting during Ramadan.

In a statement, the Wesley Girls’ High School Old Girls’ Association (WGHS OGA) insisted the school’s disallowance of students from fasting as a matter of policy is right and borne out of years of proper student management.

“OGA will continue to support the Headmistress, the Board and all authorities of the School to enforce rules and regulations that seek to serve the purpose of instilling discipline and supporting the holistic upbringing of students,” the statement said.

It was signed by its National President, Effie Simpson.

The statement, therefore, joined in with the Methodist Church against a directive by the Ghana Education Service for the authorities to stop enforcing the disallowance of fasting as a matter of policy.

It would be recalled that during the Ramadan month, a parent of a student of the Wesley Girls SHS in Cape Coast stormed the school to withdraw his ward in protest of the school’s refusal to allow her fast as a matter of policy.

The school has explained that the policy is not discriminatory against any religion but is based on the need to ensure students do not develop medical problems from such rigorous religious practices as fasting.

However, the development caused anger among some Muslims in the country with some angry groups accusing the school of perpetrating religious discrimination against the Muslim students and asking government to call the school authorities to order.

The Ghana Education Service responded by directing the school to stop enforcing the disallowance of fasting as a policy, asking authorities to allow students wishing to undertake such food abstinence once their parents give consent. 

However, the Methodist Church has rejected the directive of the GES calling it arbitrary and unnecessarily meddlesome in the time-honored tradition of one of Ghana’s A-List schools.

The Church’s position has even been volatile, with some leaders warning that if the ruling NPP pushes the agenda it would be taken as trying to foist Islamic whims and caprices on Christians.

It is in the wake of these  developments that the Old students Association has also thrown its support behind the school authorities.

The Association said as a key stakeholder of the school, it would not relent in its efforts to ensure that the School’s values were sustained at all times.

It stated that the current rules, regulations and policies of the School had successfully guaranteed the excellent academic standards that had resulted in producing high-quality individuals and citizens occupying various key positions in the country and the world.