Adisadel College assault: Blame GES, school management - Security policy expert

A Security Policy Expert, at the Center for Security Dialogue and Peace Advocacy has blamed the Adisadel College assault on the Ghana Education Services (GES) and the Management Board of Adisadel College.

According to Anthony Acquaye these two entities failed to implement adequate security protocols to safeguard the students involved.

A viral video captured a student of Adisadel College viciously assaulting his fellow student, by locking his arm around his neck and causing his victim to hit his head against a metal bed.

This caused harm to the victim leaving one side of his face severely injured.

The security expert in a statement dated July 25, 2023, indicated that the act by the student goes beyond mere bullying, to what he labelled as a clear act of terrorism.

“Genuinely, the barbaric act of assault that had occurred in Adisadel College has truly exposed many impunities happening in the various level of our institutions.

“This act, captured in the video footage, that has gone viral is beyond the word bullying this is a clear act of terrorism.

“This is a clear act of terrorism and must be blamed on the head of Ghana Education Services and the Adisadel College Management Board for failing to put in place, security policy protocols or measures to deter, detect, deny, delay and prevent such unfortunate acts by students,” parts of the statement read.

According to Acquaye, the responsibility for such incidents rests on the institutions themselves, as they have not taken appropriate measures to prevent and address such unfortunate acts among students.

He stressed that educational institutions must consider students' safety and security as paramount, particularly in the context of the rising global threat of terrorism.

“So much empirical evidence has proven that the world is in the state of terrorism act and our various universities, colleges, schools and other institutions are not exempted from areas of which this act can occur, this imperatively calls for the need to consider students safety and security as referent objects of discussion to ensure a secure environment in their pursuit of knowledge.

“It is very unfortunate, that our institutions are used to the old mechanism of protecting students and its properties, which is absolutely wrong, considering the new unfolding threat of human behaviour,” the statement continued.

He called for the implementation of a Comprehensive Security Policy Document that outlines necessary protocols and measures to manage and mitigate potential threats, ensuring the safety and well-being of students.

“For this reason, there is a need for our institutions to adopt modern strategies for preventing some of these horrible occurrences by having a Security Policy Document that spells out all the necessary strategies in managing threats or risks identified, ensuring effective command and control of students,” the expert explained.

He urged the Ghana Police Service's Criminal Investigative Department (CID) to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident and impose appropriate disciplinary actions as stipulated by law. This, he believes, will serve as a deterrent to future students who might consider engaging in such violent acts.

“Inasmuch as I condemn the act, I deem it important to clearly state, that this behaviour by the student is criminal and must not just be handled at the school Management level, but call for an investigation by the criminal investigative department of Ghana police to establish the root cause of the act and sanction the perpetrator with the appropriate disciplinary action as stipulated by the law to serve as deterrence to many other students in the future,” the statement added.

NW/WA

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