'This nonsense must stop' - UGBS Dean Prof. Bawole slams exploitation of BECE leavers for social media content

Professor Justice Bawole, the Dean of the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), has condemned social media content creators who target and ridicule Junior High School (JHS) leavers for viral visibility. Prof. Bawole described the trend of recording students who struggle to express themselves in English after their Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) as "nonsense" and "extremely terrible". He warned that such digital exploitation can permanently shatter the confidence of young people and potentially destroy their academic futures.

Prof. Bawole's reaction was triggered by a viral video showing two young men being interviewed in English by a content creator who mocked their inability to speak the language fluently. He argued that a student's inability to speak English at the JHS level is not a reflection of their intelligence, but rather a symptom of a deeply unequal educational system. He shared a story of being asked to interpret for an American couple while he was in primary school, 18 kilometres from Yeji. He could not understand a word of English at the time, leading to severe mockery in his village.

Prof. Bawole called on the Minister for Communication, Digital Technology & Innovation, to champion a legal crackdown on those who exploit vulnerable minors for social media "likes". He challenged experts in the Department of Psychology and Social Welfare to track down the young men in the viral video to provide them with urgent counselling to mitigate the risk of self-harm or trauma. Prof. Bawole urged content creators to delete such videos immediately and called for a return to the conversation regarding using local languages for instruction.