By Septimus Senessie in Kono
The deputy director of education in Kono District, Agnes N’Kanku Kamara, has been accused of fomenting a recent violence between pupils of the Ansarul Islamic Boys’ Secondary School and its administration.
The violence, which ensued late last month, left the principal’s office and the school’s computer library in tartars.
The school’s newly appointed principal, James Sanffa Kamara, claimed the angry pupils were fighting over the demotion of their former principal, Mr. Sheku Kamara. The latter was demoted from the position of principal to senior teacher. That action prompted the pupils to pelt stones at the school’s administrative building, together with its computer laboratory, leaving valuable school properties destroyed. A whole day’s learning session was thus wasted by the pupils’ disorderly behavior.
About two years ago, proprietors of the school made a formal complaint to the ministry of education against the now de-ranked principal whom they said was “disrespecting” them.
After months of investigation, in January this year, Education Education minister Minkailu Bah, at a meeting in the school’s compound in Tankoro, stripped Sheku Kamara off his office and duty as principal of the school. He was then asked to hand over keys to the principal’s office and classrooms to the current principal, James Sanffa Kamara.
Past pupils and local residents described the minister’s action as “demoralization and inhumane” against the former principal, whom they said developed the school to enviable heights in the district.
According to Sanffa Kamara, who sounded confident and fearless as he spoke to Politico, the deputy director of education in the district was to blame for the pupils’ outburst because the latter had condemned, insulted and accused him of being a dictator, vindictive and undemocratic.
“The director’s utterances against my person are unfortunate,” he said, adding that 80% of his teachers had refused to go to classes, vowing not to corporate with him because they felt he was imposed on them by the minister of education.
At her district barracks office in Koidu, the education ministry official told Politico that the principal’s allegations against her were “unfortunate and misplacement of words.”
Madam Kamara denied that she incited the pupils and teachers against their new principal, saying that she had only advised the principal to adopt the three categories of leadership styles. That, she said, included “dictatorship, democracy and laissez-faire,” if he wanted to succeed in his administration.
“As a deputy director of education in the district, I am not stupid to ignite chaos in any school as that will hinder the progress of education which I am here to promote,” she said.
© Politico 19/05/14
