Lydia Forson Fumes Over Alleged Sexual Abuse At Obuasi School
Ghanaian actress Lydia Forson has expressed anger over alleged sexual abuse involving a headmaster at a school in Obuasi, questioning why concerns about children’s safety reportedly failed to trigger timely intervention.
In a strongly worded statement, Forson said the allegations highlighted a broader societal problem in which children are left vulnerable to abuse by adults entrusted with their care and protection.
“A child should not have to be exceptionally brave to be safe,” she stressed, describing how inappropriate touching and sexual harassment can begin in childhood, sometimes within families and trusted social circles.
According to the actress, many children struggle to recognise or report inappropriate behaviour because they lack the words to explain their experiences and fear that adults may prioritise protecting an accused person’s reputation over their safety.
“It starts when you are a child. The uncle insisting you sit on his lap, the family ‘friend’ touching you inappropriately in the name of playing with you, and sometimes, before you even have the words to explain what is happening, you learn the hard way that people will protect an adult’s reputation over your discomfort,” she said.
Forson noted that the risks do not end when children leave home for school, warning that educational institutions can also become unsafe when individuals in positions of authority abuse the trust placed in them.
“You leave home for school, where you are supposed to be safe, and encounter the same danger from someone entrusted with protecting you. Can you speak? No! And even if you do, who protects you?” she questioned.
The actress also challenged institutions responsible for child protection to act promptly on reports of abuse, questioning why investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni’s reporting was needed to bring wider attention to the allegations.
She said encouraging children to report abuse was not enough if they were subsequently left without protection or forced to return to environments where they might remain vulnerable.
“We keep telling girls to report abuse. But what happens after they report? Who stands beside them? Who makes sure they do not have to return to the very person they have accused?” Forson asked.
She further criticised what she described as society’s tendency to scrutinise children’s behaviour while making excuses for adults accused of misconduct.
“We are tired of having these conversations. Tired of asking adults to protect children. Tired of watching people find every explanation for an adult’s conduct while interrogating a child’s every decision,” she said.
Forson questioned why public attention could be directed towards issues such as girls’ hairstyles while their right to attend school without sexual harassment or abuse received less attention.
The actress also emphasised that boys can be victims of sexual abuse, urging parents and guardians to recognise that child protection is not exclusively a concern for girls.
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