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, Government Technical College, Ewet, located along Nwaniba Road, about a kilometre away from Ibom Plaza, the centre of Uyo metropolis, students went on rampage on Wednesday resorting to wanton destruction of school property while police and teachers sustained various degrees of injuries.
NEWSIE Event gathered that trouble started when a teacher called the police arrest two students who were on the police wanted list for their involvement in street fighting a week ago.
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 engaged the police in a fight.
Following the fracas, the state government through its commissioner for education, Prof. Nse Essien Udo announced an 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 staffs 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 the 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 would bear the cost of damages done on the school property on resumption.
“As I speak, the DPO is in a critical condition at 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 was seriously injured. Several other members of staff and members of the general public have also sustained varying degrees of injuries.
“Several windscreens of vehicles were 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 our schools which are supposed to be a citadel of learning turned into a den of hooligans,” he said.
He warned cult groups 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 unravelled and dealt with accordingly in the course of police investigation.