The Volunteer for Muslim Youth Empowerment and Development has condemned “the horrendous attack on students of the Islamic Senior High School by the Ghana Police.”
A statement by the youth organisation said, “Students went on the streets to protest over frequent road accidents at the school’s main entrance when the alleged shooting happened. This discussion is not about whether the demonstration was authorised or not, but the unprofessional act of some police personnel.”
The group is worried about the significant implication of this attack on the safety and mental health of the students.
“The duty of the security service is to protect the life and property of the citizens. We do not see the need for the usage of teargas and bullets on unarmed students,” the statement added. “We empathise with the students, their families, and school authority, and wish a speedy recovery to the injured”.
They are calling on students to restrain and allow authorities of the school and the police to take charge and investigate the matter.
“We request an effective full-scale investigation into this incident as soon as possible,” the group appealed.
In the early hours of Monday, June 13, about 25 students were hospitalised after police allegedly opened tear gas on them while they were protesting frequent pedestrian knockdowns on the road in front of the school.
The victims were said to be part of a group of students who blocked the Abrepo Junction-Barekese Road during the protest.
The angry students had massed up on the road in protest as they called for the construction of speed humps on that section of the road.
Meanwhile, the police have admitted that its personnel could have handled the riot better.
According to the law enforcement agency, a more calculated tactic could have led to a much more salient resolution to the chaos and not the development that was seen in the Ashanti Region on Monday.
On the back of this, some top police officers in the jurisdiction have been interdicted, including the Deputy Regional Police Commander, DCOP Kwasi Akomeah-Apraku, who has been removed.