The Upper East Regional chapter of the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary School (CHASS) has expressed grave concern about the growing level of impunity among senior high schools in the region. Left unchecked and unpunished, students at second cycle institutions in the region could continue to become recalcitrant. In fact, CHASS suspects that the students may soon become ungovernable.
These sentiments were shared after students of Kuasanaba Senior High School and Sandema Senior High School engaged in violent protests a few days ago. Reports indicate that at the Sandema Senior High School, rioting students burnt down a building that houses the cadet corps accoutrements because of an earlier altercation between the cadet corp and the general student body.
At the Kusanaba Senior High School, reports suggest the violent demonstration was over a disagreement between the students and the management of the school over where an exam should be written. While the students insisted that they wanted to sit for the exam in their classrooms, the management of the school insisted that the exam should be taken in an incomplete dining hall.
When Richard Akumbasi, the Upper East Regional Chairman of CHASS spoke to Mark Smith on the Day Break Upper East Show, he could not hide his frustrations and disappointment at the actions of the students.
“In the region, we have been confronted with a few student disturbances. As I speak to you, we have a number of schools where students also have, I don’t even know how to put it but they are taking the law into their own hands. Some of the students, if you listen to their concerns, they are just unfounded. In the case of Sandema, it was just cadets and prefects. The cadet goes round to see some students misbehaving and using phones and then they want to talk to them and the students don’t agree and then they begin stoning each other. [It went] to the extent that the students would go and burn where the cadets keep their uniforms; [a building] which contains other offices and school computers and other materials. Already we do not have the things and then we are destroying them. And then you go to Kusanaba and then you look at their reasons and they are just unfounded,” he said.
Mr. Akumbasi insisted that the students must be punished without fear or favour.
“Punishment is to help correct behaviour. Some of them behave the way they are behaving because they don’t even realise the behaviour they are exhibiting is unwanted. When you punish them, they reflect and begin to do the right thing.” he said.
Source: A1radioonline.com|101.1MHz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Ghana
