The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Saboba District, Bingrini George, has indicated that the District Security Committee is set to meet with the Ghana Education Service to discuss the canoe disaster that claimed the lives of nine students of the St Charles Liwanga R/C Junior High school in the Saboba District of the Northern Region.

The DCE said top among issues to be discussed include sanctions on teachers in the district who use their students as farmhands including possible seizure of their license.

He said DISEC will also pursue the matter to ensure the headteacher is prosecuted.

Mr Bingrini said seven bodies were removed yesterday from the river and two other bodies were recovered this morning.

The DCE said normally when people drown, in line with the customs and traditions of the people of the area some rituals are performed and the bodies buried at the riverside but added that this was a special case involving students, therefore, the rituals were performed but the bodies were released to the various families for private burials. 

He said though they have had incidents of students helping their teachers on their farms they have never encountered this magnitude of students moving to one far less to talk of crossing a river.

A total of 31 students had gone to help their headteacher harvest his rice but the exercise turned sour when nine of the students drowned following the capsizing of their boat on their return journey.

At the moment, the headteacher has been arrested by the Police and is assisting in investigations.