Parents, pupils demonstrate over demolition of school

First, sources at the school told the Daily Graphic that the church demolished the junior high school of the school for the expansion of the church.

After basic school,students have to continue the JHS at the OLA presbyterian school because the Abowinim Presbyterian School had no JHS.

The kindergarten one and two classrooms had also been demolished by the church, leaving the school with classes one to six.

Teachers and pupils reopened school last Tuesday only to realise that the class one classroom had also been demolished and being developed into places of convenience.

Desks in the classroom were seen in the open, with some broken down.

The class one pupils had been put together with the class two pupils in one classroom.

A petition signed by the Chairman of the Parent Teacher Association (PTA), Mr Joe Davidson and other representatives of the demonstrators, stated that since the commencement of the 2012/2013 academic year, the minister of the church,together with the church leaders, had consistently and persistently sought to exit and dissolve the school which had served the community since 1964.

The petition said parents and concerned community members had tried to solve the situation but all efforts had proved futile.

The demonstrators, including some of the pupils in red bands, marched to the Cape Coast Metropolitan assembly with placards some of which read "Dont kill our future", "Education is important" and "Presby Church don't sabotage government" to present their petition to the metropolitan chief executive.

But the Kotokuraba District Police Commander, ASP Emmanuel Tetteh, asked the demonstrators who did not seek police permit to retreat and use the right channel to present the petition.

The petition called for the removal or transfer of the Central Regional Manager Presbyterian schools, Rev. Hayford Ayim and Rev. Andy Odonkor, the minister in charge of the church for their actions and inactions.

They further called on the MCE to immediately call the minister and leaders of the church to order and the school rebuilt and repaired.

They also called on the MCE to ensure that the church replaced all school property that have been damaged by the church and to bring all stakeholders to thoroughly discuss the issue for an amicable solution.

Rev. Ayim said he learnt about the demolition of the class one only but noted that he had traveled out of Cape Coast for a ministers' conference and could not adequately comment on the situation.

He stated that the church had renovated a room at the social welfare hills where the kindergarten pupils were being accommodated currently for the class one pupils, adding that he had handed over the key of that room to the school authorities.

Story by Shirley Asiedu Addo