The headmaster at the centre of the Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) abuse scandal is out on bail while the case moves slowly through the system. For many Ghanaians, that fact has become a symbol of a larger worry: whether schools, regulators and the justice system are doing enough to protect young people and hold the powerful to account.
Reports say the headmaster, Zakaria Abdulai, has been cautioned and granted self-recognisance bail. Under this arrangement, a suspect is released on a personal promise to return to the authorities whenever required, without needing a surety to vouch for him.
Police in Bekwai say he was arrested after a student filed a complaint on August 4, 2026, was granted bail and is now at home. When reports suggested he was in custody, a police spokesman said that was not the case. The circumstances behind the bail and the next steps have not been fully explained.
According to police, a female student alleges that on July 25, 2026, the headmaster raped her at his official bungalow on the school compound. She reportedly told officers she had gone near the residence, where students dry their clothes, and was lured inside on the pretext of an errand. She and her father reported the matter to the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) on August 4. These are allegations.
The headmaster has maintained his innocence and says he will pursue every lawful means to clear his name. A suspect is presumed innocent until a court decides otherwise.
A Bigger Set of Allegations
An investigative report has raised allegations of sexual abuse involving other female students, and later reports put the number of reported cases at 19. Police have been careful to separate that from the criminal case in front of them. The docket they sent to the Attorney-General for study and advice covers a single complainant. Other allegations would need their own complaints or investigations.
Official Fallout
Interdiction: The Ghana Education Service (GES) interdicted him pending a full investigation, and the Education Minister ordered his suspension.
CID referral: The Minister referred the sexual misconduct allegations to the Criminal Investigations Department.
Officials stepping aside: GES directed the Ashanti Regional and Obuasi education directors to step aside while the matter is probed.
Party pressure: The NDC told him to withdraw from the Juaben constituency chairmanship race or face disqualification. He later resigned as the constituency secretary and withdrew his bid.
Parliament: The GES Director-General is due to face a parliamentary committee, and MPs have questioned why he was not arrested earlier.
Calls for Justice and Support
A lawyer for some of the alleged victims says students are being pressured to withdraw their complaints. He also questions why the case seems stalled, contrasting the headmaster’s bail with the weeks that other teachers and students reportedly spent in custody. Child welfare group SOS Children’s Villages Ghana has asked education authorities to provide individual recovery and education plans for the affected girls, and to explain why earlier complaints were not acted on.
Obuasi SecTech Scandal: Can Justice Prevail Over Politics In The Case?
The public reaction goes beyond one man. People want to know how earlier warnings were handled, why action took so long, and whether the system can protect students who speak out. The case is a test of three things at once: fair treatment for the accused, real safety for complainants, and trust in the institutions meant to look after children.
Anyone aware of a child at risk can report it to DOVVSU or the Department of Social Welfare.
What people are saying on X:
(@Oyikwan_1 • 14h):
“Meanwhile national security apparatus arrested a woman in the middle night, denied her bail applications several times and remanded in custody for allegedly insulting. insults k3k3 o. Heer”
(@rtwe… • 16h):
“Every rape suspect present and in the future should be cautioned and granted self recognizance bail.”
@KOMLAFRE… · 15h
So the self-recognnisance bail still works in this country? So it is not for all because even MPs are denied such a bail but a party faithful who has been accused of rape and sexually harassing 19 young girls, a clear danger to the society, has been granted such bail?
Ghana 🇬🇭!
@pedysworld · 14h
I will be personally praying for the judgement of God upon all the wicked people involved.
Only God can be trusted!
@AM… · 15h
The students should have finish him honestly.
Governor Okatakyie Boad… · 15h
If you think, your life is save in this country. Then you are deceiving yourself.
@AmpofoAla… · 16h
This our NDC government is not a serious government. Was Salomey given a self cognisance bail? If this nonsense continues, some of us will quit this party!
@voil___ · 16h
Herh Ghana! And yet still you travelled miles to arrest a nurse geld her for a long period before going to court ..Herh Ghana!
@mikidalin1 · 11h
A headmaster, NDC constituency secretary and a RAPIST can be given a self-recognisance bail but a sitting MP accused of a non-existent offence cannot be granted same bail condition because he’s NPP.
@Pretty_Nee14 · 16h
Meanwhile, NDC is arresting ppl for just saying Dumsor is back and for sharing vedios on Tiktok.. But Rapist goes home to his warm bed cos he is NDC member .. Smh
@Asiedu_4 · 16h
Salomey is alleged to have abetted a crime of false publication. She was picked up at night from Techiman to Accra. Remanded for two weeks in police custody. The CID organized a presser to brief the nation.