Students of Kumasi Technical Institute (KTI) and Kumasi Anglican Senior High School (KASS) in the Ashanti Region were involved in a violent clash which resulted in vandalism on both campuses.
According to reports, during the violent exchange, students set car tires ablaze and hurled stones and other objects. The rampaging students damaged four private vehicles on the KASS campus, destroyed the school gate, and vandalized a billboard and notice board at KTI.
Gabriel Kingsford Osei, Principal of KTI, accused KASS students of initiating the attack on Thursday night. According to him, they stormed KTI armed with stones and machetes, targeting their school billboard.
“I quickly directed my students to their dormitories to prevent chaos and went to speak with the KASS students, but they refused to listen. Among them was a security officer armed with a catapult, leading them in the destruction,” he alleged.
He further claimed that even after engaging KASS authorities to resolve the situation, their students continued throwing stones, prompting retaliation from KTI students.
However, a tutor at KASS, Rev. Father Kenneth Collins Owusu, suggested the clash may have stemmed from tensions at the ongoing inter-school athletics competition in Kumasi.
“The slightest argument between KASS and KTI students often escalates into these confrontations. Whenever one group feels provoked, they mobilize their colleagues for retaliation,” he explained.
The Ashanti Regional Education Directorate has summoned the leadership of both schools to address the recurring issue and find a lasting solution.
Meanwhile, police officers intervened to restore order, but no arrests have been made yet. Authorities say investigations are ongoing to determine the exact cause of the clash and those responsible for the destruction.
Source: myjoynewsonline