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Kobidi AME Zion School teachers, pupils back to school …after rituals to revoke curses
Teaching and learning resumed on Monday at Kobidi AME Zion primary and Junior High School as teachers and learners returned to school after a week break occasioned by a delusion over the death of two headmasters and a teacher.
This was after rituals had been performed by the chief priest of the area – Kobidi, to stop the strange deaths recorded in the school.
The town, located in the Sunyani West Municipality of the Bono Region, was in the news last week following the death of two headmasters and a teacher of the school.
When The Spectator visited the school premises last week, it was totally deserted with parents complaining as the children roam in town.
The death of the two were initially attributed to curses invoked on the school authorities by a disgruntled learner who was unhappy about some treatment.
But from a follow-up by The Spectator on the latest development, it emerged that the curse was actually invoked by an occasional visitor to the school who many considered as mentally unbalanced.
After consultation with the traditional authorities, rituals were performed for learners and teachers to return to school.
According to the Queen mother of the town, Nana Ansu Ameyaa Gyeabour who addressed a press conference, the performance of the rituals followed consultations with the chief priest of the area.
“The nature of the issue required that we consult the chief priest of the town. It was after that consultation that he requested three rams, fowls, bottle of schnapps and some cash amount to prepare the rituals,” she said.
She explained that traditionally, that cost should have being on the family of the man that invoked the curses but due to the financial constraints, members of the community were made to contribute to pay.
“Under normal circumstances, the family of the man that invoked the curse was supposed to bear the cost of the fine but were financially constraint. As a result, households were levied Gh₵100 each to raise the money.”
Narrating the full story, the Assembly Member of the area, known as Mr Boateng said the mentally deranged man occasionally visited the school to demand a portion of food served the children under the national school feeding programme.
And most of the time, Mr Boateng said, he was denied.
Mr Boateng, said one of the days when his request was refused, he got angry and rained curses on the school authorities, specifically calling the death of any staff that embezzled any fund belonging to the school.
Subsequently, two successive head teachers and a teacher have died but what cannot be confirmed was whether it was associated with the curses and whether the three victims embezzled school funds.
Strangely, the perceived mental patient would return a day or two after the deaths to remind the staff of his curses.
That obviously caused fear and panic among the staff, culminating in the closure of the school from May 18 until last Friday’s rituals to pacify the gods and revoke the curses.
The perceived mentally challenged man has currently been excommunicated from the township for safety reasons and is reported to be in Chiraa, a nearby town.
From Daniel Dzirasah, Kobidi
Dear Obaa Yaa,
During Eid-ul- Adha celebration, I decided to spend the weekend at my boyfriend’s place since we were planning towards our marriage.
To my surprise, what keeps me wide awake, restless and frustrated every single time is that he snores loudly like a generator running on full power, and I genuinely cannot get any rest
At a point, I thought it was just a normal thing, but I have realised it is something he does with ease and doesn’t see anything wrong with it.
When he steps out in the morning, I try to get enough sleep because I may not sleep in the evening.
The most annoying thing is that, he always wants to cuddle me. These two things are a no for me and a red flag.
We are about to get married, what should I do?
Enam, Keta.
Dear Enam,
The snoring and constant cuddling are frustrating, but you don’t have to choose between sleep and closeness.
Start with the snoring: check if it’s worse when he sleeps on his back, cut out alcohol before bed, try nasal strips or a humidifier, and see a doctor if he pauses while breathing.
For quick relief, foam earplugs or noise-cancelling headphones help a lot.
Separate blankets, a bigger bed, or sleeping apart on some nights often makes couples rest well and feel closer overall.
Bring this up before the wedding .Tell him you want to wake up next to him for years to come, but sleep deprivation makes you both miserable.
Test earplugs and side-sleeping this weekend, and if it’s still unbearable, bring in a doctor. Good sleep matters more for your marriage than staying glued together all night.
The Danish Children Fund (DCF), a Denmark-based NGO supporting children’s education, has encouraged students to prioritise their education and desist from misuse and abuse of drugs to enhance their holistic growth and development.
The call was made during a day’s sensitisation seminar on drug abused for students in Tamale to help them make informed life choices and stay away from abusing drug substances.
The event, held under an initiative dubbed: ‘Youths in Focus,’ brought together students, teachers and officials from the Ghana Police Service, Narcotics Control Commission and Ghana Education Service to educate young people on the dangers associated with drugs abused and their addiction trends.
Mr Benjamin Yin, Project Manager of DCF and Headmaster of Kalpohin SDA Basic School, speaking during the event, said the intervention was necessitated by increasing concerns over drugs abused among the youth in Tamale.
He said the organisation, which primarily focused on supporting needy children to remain in school, recognised the need to complement educational support with interventions that empowered young people to make responsible decisions.
Mr Yin highlighted some achievements of the DCF in the education sector in Tamale and said the organisation currently sponsored 55 vulnerable children to remain in school, most of whom were orphans.
He explained that out of the number, 23 beneficiaries were at Kalpohin SDA School, 18 at Tamale SDA School and 15 at Jakarayili School.
He said the support package included learning materials, food and other essential items to prevent school dropouts.
Beyond educational sponsorship, he said the organisation had invested in educational infrastructure to improve learning environments in beneficiary schools.
The Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Mr Richard Akumi, Deputy Northern Regional Crime Officer, who addressed the students during the event, described the abuse of drugs among young people as a major challenge requiring collective action.
He said the Ghana Police Service had intensified efforts to tackle the abuse of drug in the region through law enforcement operations and community sensitisation programmes.
ASP Mr Akumi noted that the Northern Regional Police Command’s Special Operations Team had been carrying out operations across Tamale to dismantle drug hotspots and arrest suspects involved in drug-related activities. –GNA
