Ebonyi: Tension as Sand Miners Wreck Havoc on Eziokposi High Sch, Community Protests

The people of Okposi in Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State have raised the alarm over the invasion of a public secondary school in the community by sand miners, a situation that the community said poses great danger to the safety of the staff and students of the school.

Residents of the area who spoke to FACTSHEET, said the sand miners invaded Eziokposi High School, an institution established in 1982, with heavy equipment including excavator and heavy duty trucks carted away laterite from the school premises.

The development was a huge devastation to the topography of the school. The school’s handball pitch was the most affected as it was completely destroyed. Aside the degradation of the place, informed sources said the environmental implication could be enormous as there was no Environmental Impact Assessment before the miners descended on the place.

The action of the miners, whom a resident described as people “close to the government” has thrown the community into confusion with some parents already withdrawing their children from the school for fear of any unforeseen accident.

Speaking to FACTSHEET, a resident, Mr. Chinwendu Nwanja (not real name), narrated their shock when they suddenly saw construction equipment invade the school and started excavating sand from the school premises on October 1. According to him, “just as children resumed for the first term in the current academic session, we noticed that big trucks and caterpillar invaded the school and started excavating sand, even while children were in school.”

He said that the perpetrators of the satanic act chose October 1 which was a public holiday, and many people in the area including the staff and students were involved in the Independence Day celebrations.

However, it was gathered that both staff and students were shocked to have seen the level of damage to their premises on coming to school the next day.

They reportedly scampered for safety because no one was aware or pre-informed of the reason for the mining activities.

A source told this newspaper that the school was wickedly destroyed while the mined sand was being taken to the neighbouring community where the local government is building a market.

Irked by what happened, the community leaders mobilized their people and embarked on a peaceful protest that eventually stopped the sand miners, though temporarily.

Despite the rejection and protests against their activities, another resident told FACTSHEET that the “big government people” behind the excavation were threatening members of the community and the teachers for trying to stop them.

When this newspaper visited the school last week, despite the fact that our reporter arrived there by 11.00am, the entire school premises was deserted and looked abandoned.

Our reporter made efforts to speak to residents, but many declined citing the safety issues as according to one of them, “we have been warned not to say anything to anyone” for our own safety.

When FACTSHEET visited, the contractor’s equipment was still at the school premises with green leaves placed on it as a sign of the community’s disapproval.

FACTSHEET noticed that the school has suffered long years of neglect as most of the buildings there had no roofs. The level of dilapidation there was heartrending.