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Joe Effiong, Uyo
Akwa Ibom government has shut down a secondary school in Uyo metropolis over a cult war that resulted in critical injuries to a divisional police officer in one of the divisions in Uyo, as well as many teachers and students.
The school in question is Government Technical College, Ewet, located along Nwaniba Road, about a kilometre away from Ibom Plaza, the centre of Uyo metropolis, where students went on the rampage on Wednesday resorting to wanton destruction of school property while police and teachers sustained various degrees of injuries.
Our correspondent learnt that trouble started when a teacher called the police for the arrest of two students who were on the police wanted list for their involvement in street fighting a week ago week.
It was gathered that when the police arrived at the school compound, some students locked the gate and barricaded the main entrance chanting war songs and engaging the police in a fight.
Following the fracas, the state government through its Commissioner for Education, Prof Nse Essien Uyo on Thursday, announced the indefinite closure of the school citing the unruly behaviour of the students who destroyed school property and caused injuries to police officers, including a DPO who went to quell the riot, and staff of the college.
“Government Technical College, Ewet in Uyo metropolis is hereby shut indefinitely and all the students are advised to vacate the school premises with immediate effect.
“The staff of the college are, however, advised to continue to report for duty,” Essien said.
He said that 34 students of the college, whose names were compiled through intelligence sources as being masterminds of the incident have been placed on indefinite suspension and would not return to the school, even when the school reopens.
Essien said that students of Ewet Technical College would bear the cost of damages done to the school property on resumption.
“As I speak, the Divisional Police Officer is in a critical condition in the hospital as a result of injuries sustained in an effort to quell the students unrest.
“A member of staff of the college is under surgical operation on his left eye, while another one has also been seriously injured. Several other members of staff and members of the public have also sustained varying degrees of injuries.
” And several windscreens of vehicles have also been smashed as a result of the street fighting which has almost become a trademark of the college.
“As a responsible government, we cannot sit down, fold our hands and watch, how our schools which are suppose to be citadel of learning are being turn into a den of hooligans,” he said.
He warned cult organisations to stay off schools in the state as government would no longer tolerate such infringements.
He added that patrons and sponsors of cult groups in the schools would be unraveled and dealt with accordingly in the course of police investigation.
