News
OLA SHS teachers under threat…as robbers ‘raid’ school
Teachers of OLA Senior High School, Ho, have been living in fear and anxiety for the past three months.
This follows persistent raid on their bungalows by robbers.
There have been about 15 cases of break-ins and stealing of personal items at teachers’ bungalows on campus since October, this year.
Some of the terrified teachers, who spoke to The Spectator on Monday, said that the robbers, who operated day and night, often gained access to the school by scaling a portion of the perimeter fence wall near the Galenku Hill.
“They usually strike during class hours when teachers were not at home,” a source told The Spectator.
In most cases, the burglars took away cooking utensils and harvested vegetables from the gardens of the teachers.
In one instance, they stole more than 50 fowls from the poultry coop of a teacher, and went further to steal fish and other food items from the kitchen of other teachers.
Worse, still the thieves sometimes left notes that read ‘Rest in Peace” on the doors of their victims.
According to the teacher, sometimes the robbers were spotted fleeing with dangerous weapons like cutlasses and metal bars in hand, which made them very dangerous to approach and apprehend.
“Now, we do not know whether the robbers will soon extend their nefarious activities to the dormitories of the students,” one of the teachers whose house was burgled five times during the period said.
According to him, an intruder who attempted to break into his bungalow recently during the day time, was arrested and handed over to the police, but the suspect was later released for lack of evidence.
Meanwhile, some teachers who can no longer put up with the trend are making frantic efforts to vacate their bungalows, and rent rooms in town.
When contacted on phone, the headmistress, Madam Regina Coffie confirmed the story and said that “thieves are harassing us.”
But she later cancelled an appointment with this reporter for a briefing on the issue.
On his part, the Ho Municipal Police Commander, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Alex Adade Yeboah said that the cases were being looked into and that officers had mounted a search for the culprits, in addition to day and night patrols around the school.
Pix: OLA Senior High School, Ho
President John Dramani Mahama has held a high-level meeting with the Heads of Security Agencies, Minister for the Interior and Acting Minister for Defence on the ongoing security services recruitment process.
Following a briefing on the process, the President has directed that the number of men and women to be recruited to the various security agencies should be increased from twenty-thousand (20,000) to forty thousand (40,000) over a four year period.
The President has also directed the Heads of the Security Agencies to ensure transparency and fairness in the recruitment process.
Present at the meeting were the Chief of Staff, Secretary to the President, Senior Presidential Advisor on Governmental Affairs, National Security Coordinator, Inspector General of Police Director General Prisons, Director General Fire Service, Comptroller-General of the Ghana Immigration Service and the Director General of the Narcotics Control Commission
At the request of the minority leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, officials of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) met with members of the Parliamentary Minority Caucus today.
The engagement afforded the Caucus an opportunity to provide the Fund with feedback on recent economic developments in Ghana.
The discussions were mutually beneficial to both sides as stakeholders in Ghana’s governance.
The IMF delegation was led by Adrian Alter, Resident Representative, accompanied by Mr. Razafimahefa Ivohasina Fizara, Coordinator of AFRITAC West 2 and Mr. Osa Ahinakwah Economist at the IMF Country Office.
Members of the Caucus in attendance were, Jerry Ahmed Shaib, Second Deputy Minority Whip; Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, Ranking Member on Finance; Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Ranking Member on Economy and Development; Kweku Agyeman Kwarteng, Chairman on Budget; Abena Osei-Asare, Chairperson of Public Accounts; and Collins Adomako-Mensah, Deputy Ranking Member on Energy.
Dr. Antoinette Tsiboe-Darko, Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party, also represented the Party.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
