The Ashanti Regional Police Command has disputed allegations that officers assigned to calm protesting Kumasi Girls Senior High School pupils physically attacked some of them, despite evidential bruises from some of the students.
The police in a statement, said that the “stories and videos are false, untruths and a fabrication to bring the Police Service into disrepute and we condemn this action in no uncertain terms.”
Meanwhile, some students anonymously indicted the police for their bruises.
The police also stated that the military was not involved in moderating the protests, as several students claimed.
“The only Military Officers who were present at Kumasi Girls Secondary School were part of a joint patrol team who were close to the school and had gone there to verify what was happening.”
The protest came about as management of the school made the decision to not allow final year students go home for mid-semester break, as a measure to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
The police also accused some media houses of having published “false stories” with respect to the claims.
“The Command would be grateful if you go back to the Schools and ascertain the true facts,” the statement noted.
“We are also aware of some false videos purported to be that of the incident and advice the publishers to take these down or else, the Command shall subject them to strict proof and failing, we shall take the necessary actions available.”
Some students on condition of anonymity shared their plights..
“It was during prep when a senior house mistress called all prefects that they had received a directive from the Ghana Education Service that the students will not be going home for the midsem break. Just after the message reached the students, they became infuriated and started destroying veronica buckets and dustbins and were chanting ‘we want to go home’.”
“After that incident, the school management called some military men and they came to cane us. It was the unfortunate students who actually got hurt. They were stamping on some students and even barged into rooms and beat students,” she added.
According to another student, “[On Monday] we started making noise, breaking veronica buckets and dustbins and other things, chanting that we wanted to go home and that we are starving.”
“Later in the day, we were in the dormitory when soldiers came around and started hitting us with sticks and even if you are lying on your bed, they will pull you down and cane you. They stepped on people’s abdomen, in presence of our house mistresses” she recounted.
A prefect at the school also recounted that: “they banged doors, broke into dormitories and hit students. Some have red eyes and face now,” she said.
