Talensi District Assembly has denied having knowledge of the ripped off classrooms at Baapelug JHS which occurred since May 2020.
The incident which has become an eye saw has put the lives of Pupils of Baapelug JHS in very serious danger, especially as the region waits to receive its first share of the 2021 rainfall.
Apexnewsgh.com can report that teaching and learning aren’t conducive to the current situation.
According to a leading member of ‘Narrative Change,’ a recognized organization formed to foster development by some patriotic citizens of Upper East Region Solomon Gbenga, a little over Five Thousand Ghana Cedis (Ghc 5,000.00) will be able to save the lives of these pupils by way of fixing the long-awaited looming danger.
However, he is calling on authorities, chiefs, and well-meaning personalities of Talensi living in both home and abroad to come to the aid of the innocent children before any harm is caused.
The Assemblyman of the area Osman Abubakar Abengo (Hon) when contacted said, he cannot dispute in 2018 the incident did not happen but, emphasizing that with the current situation happened in 2020.
“I learned that wasn’t the first time that school was ripped off. It has happened and happened again. So, when it happened, immediately the headmaster called me and I immediately went there and we sent a report to the assembly and the engineer followed up immediately to the site and then we assessed it, and it came out that the wood that was used is all rotten. So, the previous job they did was to just put on some new wood on top and put new zinc. But, the bonding between the new and the old wood could not happen because the down one was rotten and it was only the top one was strong hence what happens in April -May 2020” He explained
According to the Assemblymember, after the costing with the assembly, the assembly concluded to do what he described as ‘total roofing’ before the arrival of COVID-19 and a directive was given for all schools to closed down.
However, he is confident that the school will receive some attention before the rain set in, especially as the district waits for the presidential appointment of the new District Chief Executive.
He further reiterated that since the reopening of schools in January, he has been following the issue up with the district assembly.
Mr. Yin Jacob, the headteacher at the Baapelug JHS when contacted expressed dissatisfaction with the current situation. According to him, he came and met the incident in September 2020 when he resumed post as the headteacher, stressing that the lives of teachers and pupils are in danger and they can no longer study with their peace of mind. “Putting the roof back in shape is what we are asking for”. He told Apexnewsgh.com
Most of the aggrieved parents who were not satisfied with the assembly delay in fixing up the ripped off classrooms have questioned, what the assembly is doing since the re-opening of schools in January till April 14, 2021, as at the time of filing this story, the school is still managing with their teaching and learning with such bad environmental condition.
Meanwhile, when Apexnewsgh.com contacted the caretaker District Chief Executive (DCE) Dr. Christopher Boatbil on the said issue, he said the issue hasn’t come to his attention for the first time and his position contradicted the position of the assemblyman of the area whose position clearly pointed out district assembly next of action after taking the cost of the full damage.
“To the best of my knowledge, i don’t know that a school is ripped off there, you are even telling me. So maybe tomorrow, I would ask the engineer to know the report they brought am aware of only Tola, am not aware of Baapelug JHS” Dr. Boatbil explained.
Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen
