The Akwa Ibom State Government has closed down Government Technical College, Ewet in Uyo local government area indefinitely over unrest, which left many including the Divisional Police Officer in the area injured.
Students of the school had on Wednesday, 19th February engaged in a fight that led to the destruction of properties, and injuries to some staff and policemen who tried to quell the crisis.
It was learnt that the Divisional Police Officer in the area was injured during the unrest and is in a critical condition at an undisclosed hospital while a member of staff was undergoing surgical operation on his left eye. Other staff and members of the public sustained varying degrees of injuries.
The Commissioner for Education, Prof. Nse Essien said on Thursday in Uyo in a press statement that the student crises has become a recurring decimal.
Prof. Essien noted that a full scale investigation will be carried out on the causes of the crises and advised the students to immediately vacate the school premises.
He stated that the government will not fold its hands and allow the school to be turned into a den of hooligans, adding that the students of the college will bear the cost of all the damages caused during the crisis.
The Commissioner who said 34 students have been named as masterminds of the incident.
He explained that all the students arrested during the incident and those to be arrested will be prosecuted in a juvenile court.
“Government Technical College, Ewet, Uyo is hereby shut down indefinitely and all the students are advised to vacate the school premises with immediate effect. Staff of the college are however advised to continue to report for duty.
“All students arrested during this unfortunate incident and those to be arrested in the course of police investigation will be prosecuted in a normal and juvenile court.
“34 students whose names were compiled through intelligent sources as being masterminds to these recurrent ugly incidents are hereby placed on indefinite suspension. They will not return to our school system until their cases have been reviewed. The students of Government Technical College, Ewet will bear the cost of all the damages caused by their action on resumption (if at all),” he stated.
Meanwhile, the Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Nnudum Frederick who confirmed the incident said 11 students have been arrested in connection with the crisis.
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