Students of St Anthony Business and Vocational School, Bamboi in the Bole Bamboi District of the Northern Region are calling on the Ghana Education Service, government and the Catholic Education Unit to stop the Principal and other teachers from using them as farm laborers.

According to the students, every farming season, the principal and other teachers use them as farm hands at the expense of their books and other academic activities. They thus attributed their dismal performance in examinations to their continual engagement on the farm by their masters Information gathered by Public Agenda indicates that female students in particular, are forced to work on teachers' farms for long periods instead of academic work. This is possibly so because though the school is a mixed sex one, it is only the female students who live on campus.

A student, who pleaded anonymity, said she and her colleagues are always sent to work on teachers' farms, a situation she described as "seriously affecting our studies". She indicated that they normally return to school tired and cannot study or do other exercises given them by the same teachers. The student further alleged that, the teachers have threatened to sack any student who dared to report the matter or do any "Konkonsa" to anybody outside the school or even their parents.

When this reporter contacted the school, the Principal, Mr Gaythen Paaga rubbished the complaints of the students . He said no student was forced to work on any farm.

He rather accused a parent of one of the students of peddling falsehood about him and the school. Committing himself somehow, he burst out, "That girl in particular does not go to farm. Even if they go, many of them don't even do anything because they don't know anything about farming."

He said also that the farm students worked on was for the school and not any master in particular, adding that he is the only one having a personal farm on which he hired labourers and not students.

He admitted however that a parent had confronted the PTA chairman over matter and "it came to my notice and a PTA emergency meeting was held in that respect. So, I cannot understand why the man has taken it too far as it stands today. Immediately after this interview, I would call the PTA chairman for an emergency meeting," he said.

Mr. Paaga also explained that, on a number of occasions when the school authorities tried to send the students to the school's farm, it rained thereby making it impossible for them to go.

However, a past student of the school who only identified herself as Alberta and a resident of Bamboi disclosed that, "the principal is lying. I have just heard that immediately you finished interviewing him, he called an emergency assembly of the students and warned them to be tightlipped if anybody called them to find out anything about the school. He said they would be dismissed if they spoke."

She alleged further that a teacher disclosed to her that, teachers who are averse to the abuse of students were summoned and warned to stay away from responding or talking to any journalist about the school after this reporter's visit.

More so, the former student accused the principal of terminating the appointment of a house mistress by name Miss Liona who was said to have always spoken against the abuse of the students.