The President of the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS), Rashid Ibrahim, has called on the government to consider banning children below the age of 15 from using social media.
He said the move could help protect children from harmful online influences, shape their character and promote stronger moral values.
He cited similar measures adopted in countries including Australia, France and Indonesia.
Mr Ibrahim made the call during a panel discussion at the fourth Muslim Leaders and Catholic Bishops Meeting Dialogue, held on the theme: “Addressing the Challenges of Rising Indiscipline in Our Schools: The Role of Faith-Based Organisations.”
“It looks like our kids are abusing social media too much and they must not be allowed to do that,” he said.
Mr Ibrahim, who is also a legal practitioner, attributed the growing indiscipline among students partly to inadequate parental control and weak supervision in schools.
He stressed the need for children to understand that misconduct has consequences, adding that appropriate sanctions should be applied when juveniles breach school rules and regulations.
Meanwhile, the Commission Secretary of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Mrs Lucille Hewlett Annan, urged parents to make the upbringing and welfare of their children a priority when planning their lives.
“Taking care of children require money. It requires time. It requires a lot of resources, and it requires prayers,” she said.
Dr Haruna Zagoon-Sayeed, Senior Lecturer and Lead Convener of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Ghana, also called for stronger government support for faith-based organisations to help promote discipline in schools.
“Imagine a school with 2000 students and you have one chaplain who should be able to give the moral education that we expect,” he said.
Dr Zagoon-Sayeed said the increasing level of indiscipline among children was a reflection of declining societal values.
He added that broken family structures were depriving children of the care, guidance and nurturing needed for their moral development.
