‘I didn’t do anything’ – Obrachire SHS student demands justice after athletics attack
An Obrachire Senior High School student who was violently attacked during a district inter-schools athletics competition at Agona Swedru in the Central Region has called for the arrest and prosecution of those responsible.
Akpekakovi Fiadzigbe sustained facial injuries and lost a tooth after he was allegedly pelted with stones by students of Swedru School of Business during the competition.
A video of the incident, which has circulated widely on social media, shows individuals throwing stones, with some appearing to step on him as he lay on the ground, while others fled the scene.
Speaking in an interview with TV3 after being discharged from hospital, Fiadzigbe said the attack was unprovoked and happened without warning while he was trying to apply medication to his eye.
“They threw stones at me when I was looking for a place to sit to use the medicine on my eye. It happened unexpectedly,” he said. “I didn’t do anything.”
He explained that he was unaware of any brewing tension before the assault began.
“I was just standing there and they started throwing the stones. I wasn’t looking. When I turned, I saw my colleagues running but I didn’t know what was happening. By the time I realised, the stone came to hit me.”
Pressed on whether he had done anything to provoke the attackers, he insisted: “I didn’t do anything to them.”
Asked what outcome he was seeking, the student said, “I want them to be arrested and anything the government wants to do to them.”
The Ghana Police Service has since arrested three students in connection with the incident and says investigations are ongoing.
The Ghana Education Service and the Ministry of Education have condemned the violence, describing it as unacceptable and contrary to the spirit of sportsmanship. They have called for those responsible to be dealt with in accordance with the law.
In the wake of the attack, all ongoing sporting activities in the Central Region have been suspended pending a review and the introduction of enhanced security measures.
The incident has reignited concerns about safety at inter-school sporting events, with education authorities under pressure to ensure that competitive rivalry does not degenerate into violence.
