GES debunks fresh death reports at Ghana National College, cites 2018 incident

The Ghana Education Service (GES) has clarified that reports circulating about the death of a student at Ghana National College relate to a 2018 incident and not a recent tragedy.

The clarification follows renewed attention to the death of Ruby Teiko, a first-year student who died after reportedly experiencing breathing difficulties during a dormitory inspection at the Cape Coast-based school.

In a Facebook post on Friday, November 6, the Service rejected suggestions of a recent death at the institution.

“No student has passed away at Ghana National College. This particular reported demise occurred in 2018,” GES stated.

Ruby Teiko’s death was reported in May 2018 after she reportedly suffered an asthma-related emergency at Elsie Dadzie Hall.

Contemporaneous media reports said the 17-year-old complained of breathlessness during a dormitory inspection and was later taken to the Cape Coast Government Hospital, where she was pronounced dead on arrival.

Her father, Amanor Okine, subsequently accused the school of negligence and threatened legal action over the circumstances surrounding her death.

School authorities denied wrongdoing, with the then headmistress maintaining that they had done their best to assist the student.

GES has now condemned the renewed circulation of the account, saying it risks reopening the grief of the deceased student’s family and tarnishing the image of the school’s staff.

The Service urged the public to disregard what it described as “disingenuous attempts by some faceless individuals” to revive the incident and “unjustly besmirch the reputation of the teachers/house mistresses and the school.”