Two students appear in court for rioting
Accra (Greater Accra) 12 January 2002 - Two students of St Thomas Aquinas Secondary School were on Friday arraigned at the Osu Community Tribunal for invading Labone Secondary School.
The students, Umaru Andani, 21 and Michael Sanayah, 18 charged with rioting and causing unlawful damage, pleaded not guilty and were granted three million cedis bail with a surety each to reappear on January 25.
The tribunal chaired by Mrs Ivy Heward Mills issued a bench warrant for the arrest of four other students of the same school, who were accomplices and were not in court.
They were: Hector Quaye, Lamptey Bismarck, Daniel Saakwa-Mantey and Leonard Quartey. Police Inspector Johnson K. Anim told the tribunal that at about 3:15pm on December 12, last year, a group of students were seen fighting in front of Labone Secondary School gate.
The police alleged that the cause of the clash was very trivial and ridiculous, perhaps a fight over girls. The situation, however, led to the closure of Labone Secondary School, three days ahead of vacation.
A security man of Labone, Mr Matsil Kudjoe, who was on duty at the school went and separated them and realised that they were from Accra Academy and St Thomas Aquinas Secondary Schools.
On December 14, at about 15:00 hours Mr Kudjoe, who was on duty again, heard a noise outside the school gate and went to find out what the problem was and there he saw a group of students with stones, cutlasses and metal bars from St Thomas Aquinas invading the Labone Secondary School.
When Mr Kudjoe refused to allow them to enter the campus they became aggressive and started throwing stones and metals and in the process destroyed the school's gate and security lights valued at 2 million cedis. Mr Kudjoe was also injured.
The police were telephoned and they succeeded in arresting the students from St Thomas Aquinas.
GRi../
Send your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com