The Ghana Education Service (GES) has temporarily suspended all zonal inter-school sporting activities in the Central Region following a series of violent incidents that have marred recent competitions.
The decision was disclosed by the Head of Public Relations at GES, Daniel Fenyi, during an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme. He described the trend as deeply troubling and incompatible with the core values of school sports.
According to Mr. Fenyi, the Service convened an emergency meeting with key stakeholders after observing what he termed a dangerous escalation of student rivalries, from verbal confrontations to outright physical attacks.
“We have met with all stakeholders and decided to put these activities on hold due to a rise in violence at certain events,” he stated. “We want to understand the causes, who is responsible, and how these incidents are occurring before resuming activities.”
He emphasised that the conduct breaches the GES Code of Conduct and, in certain instances, may constitute criminal offences under Ghanaian law. Where the severity of incidents meets the legal threshold, cases will be referred to the police for further investigation and possible prosecution.
“It is concerning that school rivalries have escalated from verbal disagreements to physical assaults, which the Ghana Education Service cannot accept as part of our sporting activities,” he added.
The suspension comes on the heels of a widely circulated video showing students of Swedru School of Business (SWESBUS) assaulting a student of Obrachire Senior High Technical School during a district athletics competition held in Agona Swedru on February 19.
The footage, which sparked public outrage, intensified calls for disciplinary and preventive measures within the school sports framework.
GES reaffirmed its commitment to restoring discipline, safety and sportsmanship across all school-related activities. The Service indicated that competitions will only resume after a thorough assessment is conducted and corrective mechanisms are instituted to prevent further outbreaks.
Education authorities maintain that while healthy rivalry is a natural component of competitive sports, violence will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
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