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Teenage pregnancy and drug abuse is fast gaining grounds in second cycle institutions across the country following the hasty implementation of president Akufo Addo’s free Senior High School policy, The aL haJJ’s investigations have uncovered.

Disturbing reports across the country reaching this paper indicate that some free SHS beneficiaries leaving in rented apartments due to lack of space in most boarding houses have now become bed warmers of hungry sex-seeking men whilst the boys have taken to drug abuse.

“The girls have started getting pregnant and the boys too have started smoking wee,” a house master in one of the Senior High Schools in the Brong Ahafo region told this paper on strict condition of anonymity.

Narrating the dire conditions in second cycle institutions in the country, a headmaster of one of the schools in the Northern region also told the al-hajj; “the problem here is that the number of students GES tasked us to admit into the boarding houses was way beyond our capacity. We had no choice than to admit them and when the space at the boarding houses was full, we asked the rest to find alternative accommodation in town.”

The headmaster continued “this student through their parent’s teamed up to rent apartments in town. And that is where they leave and come to school every day. I have personally visited some of them and it is sad that in some of the rooms, you’ll see as many as 10 girls or boys in one room. This problem is across the country.

Some of the schools can admit only 200 students into the boarding house but they were asked to admit 400, others that can take 300 have been asked to admit 700. Where are they going to find space for the rest? Meanwhile some of these students are coming from far places”.