Tabloid News of Friday, 8 March 2002

Source: The Ghanaian Chronicle

Gun-pulling headmaster flee from missile-wielding students

Mr J.E Adjei, headmaster of Boakye Tromo Senior Secondary Technical School (BTSSTS) at Duayaw-Nkwanta in the Brong Ahafo Region, on February 20, this year, shocked the town-folk when he pulled a gun and opened fire on students who were demonstrating against him over what they called lack of transparency in the running of the school.

Chronicle gathered that after the headmaster had fired the warning shot the students charged on him, forcing him to run for his dear life.

The students then went on the rampage, destroying property which the school authorities valued at ?16million.

Sources close to the Chronicle explained that for some time now, the students and the headmaster had been at each other's throat over the direction of his administration.

Any time that the issue of the mismanagement of the school was raised by the students, the school's Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) was ready to jump to the side of Adjei, until recently when it realised that all was not well with the school, a source disclosed.

Chronicle gathered that the straw that broke the camel's back was that the students were asked to pay ?30,000 each per term for their hostel bed, and as majority of them could not afford it they had to end up sleeping on the bare floor.

All efforts to get their grievances addressed by the school authorities did not receive any favourable result, Chronicle learnt.

Adjei, alias Kwadwo Sardine, aggravated issues when in the course of the demonstration he ran to his room, pulled a gun and fired twice to scare the students away, Chronicle learnt.

All attempts to speak to Adjei proved futile, but when Chronicle reached Mr.S.K.Ayensu, the acting Brong Ahafo Regional Director of Education, he said he was only informed of the demonstration and the subsequent closing of the school on Monday, March 4.

"In fact, I was only informed by the Board of Governors of the school only yesterday about what was happening at BTSSTS and I was supposed to be at Duayaw-Nkwanta to see what is actually going on there but due to some other pressing issues the trip was cancelled but I will be in the school on Thursday," he said.

Ayensu said he had not been briefed on the issues at stake, particularly the allegations of impropriety against the headmaster and, therefore, could not comment on them and what had brought the name of the school in sludge.

The school has since been February 21 closed down, but as at press time yesterday efforts were being made by the PTA to resolve the issue but their first meeting on Monday, March 4 ended in a stalemate as tempers flared up.

Some of the allegations against the headmaster also touched on the use of two different receipt books by the authorities for school fees collection and the payment of different school fees by students offering the same course.

Currently, the school has a single Mathematics tutor who is even a retired teacher.

To rob salt on injury, Chronicle learnt that the retired tutor is having problems in handling the Modern Maths.

The school is currently without a Literature tutor due to the differences between the head master and the only Literature master in the school.

Adjei is also accused of failing to account for what was realised by the school during the 10th anniversary celebration and many other serious malpractices that have the possibility of setting him and the parents on a collision course