Gospel musician Ohemaa Mercy has called for a rethink of Ghana’s ban on corporal punishment in schools, arguing that the absence of caning has contributed to indiscipline among students.
The singer made the comments during an interview with George Quaye on Joy Prime, captured online on August 19, 2026, where she openly disagreed with the decision to prohibit caning in schools.
Drawing from her experience as a former teacher, Ohemaa Mercy said corporal punishment once served as a strong deterrent and pushed students to take their studies seriously.
She believes some pupils were more disciplined and attentive because they knew poor performance or misconduct could attract punishment.
“For me, it is a big problem because students become attentive when they know there is a cane. When there is no cane, it means there is no discipline.
“Stopping caning in schools, for me, was not the best decision. It should be reintroduced. Some of us had to force ourselves to learn English because we knew our English teacher would cane us if we failed to get the right words,” she said.
Ohemaa Mercy also reflected on her own time in the classroom, recalling how she dealt with students she considered particularly difficult.
She said her former students are likely to remember her for being strict, especially when it came to correcting stubborn behaviour.
“The one thing they will remember me for is that I used to cane them a lot. I was really caning because the children were very stubborn,” the Ghanaian gospel singer further stated.
Watch what she said below.
Ohemaa Mercy argues that the ban on caning students is contributing to a rise in indiscipline in schools. Do you agree?
— Joy Prime (@JoyPrimeTV) August 19, 2026
Watch #primetime here: https://t.co/c6qIDUoRop pic.twitter.com/r75i9wHdeY
