Schools To Go Through Electrical Cables Audit

The Ashanti Regional Coordinating Council hopes to team up with the Ministry of Education to set up a committee to conduct an audit on all electrical wirings of buildings in senior high and technical schools in the region.

The plan which was announced by the Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, is a proactive move to prevent further any incidents of fire outbreaks in schools that are triggered by faulty electric wiring.

The move follows last weekend’s fire outbreak at the Konongo-Odumasi Senior High School, which razed down portions of the boys dormitory and destroyed personal belongings of the students.

According to the regional minister, the two bodies will visit all the second circle schools during this vacation period to make sure that there is total rewiring of faulty or outlived wiring before the reopen day.

Mr Osei Mensah said schools that are over 20 years old should have their cables changed to new in order to ensure safety of students in the boarding houses and save cost to government.

He was accompanied to the school by the Ashanti Regional NADMO Coordinator, Kwabena Senkyire, Regional Director of Education, Ms Mary Owusu Achiaw, and the Municipal Chief Executive of Asante-Kim Central.

The minister presented food items such as mattresses, blankets, buckets, school and other basic materials to the affected students of the Konongo-Odumasi Senior High School, whilst he assured the school of government's readiness to restore the building in the shortest possible time.

Last week Saturday, fire demolished portions of the boys’ dormitory of the Konongo-Odumasi SHS, leaving more than 100 students displaced.

Although the cause of the fire is not yet known, the minister believes that it was as a result of an electrical fault. The affected students have since joined their colleagues in other dormitories.