Akuapem North Member of Parliament (MP), Sammi Awuku, has raised alarm over what he describes as a dangerous stockpile of stones kept by students of Okuapeman and Mount Sinai Senior High Schools and used during reprisal attacks.
According to Mr Awuku, the stones have become readily available “ammunition” for students whenever tensions between the two schools escalate.
Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, he said the scale of the violence and the manner in which the stones were used pointed to a deeper problem requiring urgent attention.
“The students have a stockpile of stones, and when it comes to reprisal attacks, they go for them. They fly it like rockets,” he said.
Mr Awuku said the discovery was particularly disturbing because the stones were being deliberately used as weapons during confrontations between students of the two institutions.
“The stones are like ammunitions. It is an eye sore,” he stated.
He explained that tensions between the two schools had persisted over the years, particularly during football competitions, with occasional incidents triggering wider confrontations.
The latest escalation began on Monday when reports of students from both schools pelting each other with stones prompted the police to intervene.
Mr Awuku said some police officers were injured during the intervention, while security personnel remained in the area to prevent the situation from escalating further.
He said the police returned on Tuesday and stayed in the area until about 10pm or 11pm before leaving.
However, at about 1:20am, school authorities began receiving reports of attacks and the destruction of facilities on both campuses.
The violence left several students injured and caused extensive damage to school property.
Mr Awuku said about 25 students from Mount Sinai were injured, with some reportedly requiring surgery, while seven Okuapeman students also sustained injuries.
He said the scale of the destruction and the use of stones as weapons demonstrated the seriousness of the situation and warned against treating the incident as merely a disagreement between students.
The MP also pointed to the absence of a physical barrier between the two schools as a factor that makes it easier for confrontations to spill from one campus to the other.
He called for parents, school authorities and other stakeholders to take a more active role in addressing the behaviour of students and preventing further violence between the two institutions.
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