“The female students holding placards were topless. No clothes, nothing to cover their valuable asserts – breasts. It was a free show. To them, they had no value for their nudity. After all, of what essence are naked breasts when their true and most cherished pride, virginity, had been forcefully and painfully stolen from them through rape.
Yes, gathered were female students of KNUST who have been robbed and raped. Today, together with their male counterparts, they have carried out a very sad and peaceful demonstration to appeal to the Vice Chancellor about the state of insecurity on campus.
The numerous placards carried by the ladies read;
“RAPED AND ROBBED”
“MY VIRGINITY IS GONE”
“IT COULD BE YOU”
While the gentlemen held cards that read;
“MY FUTURE WIFE HAS BEEN RAPED”
and others read,
“MY LAPTOP IS GONE”
Others wrote,
“DARK DAYS IN KNUST”
“WHO CARES ABOUT STUDENTS”
“KNUST UNDER SIEGE”
“KNUST HAS FALLEN APART”
Never in the University’s history had such numbers been recorded for a student protest. The fact that majority among the students gathered were females who mostly refuse partaking in student protests spoke volumes about the severity with which the students valued this protest.
The demonstrating crowd had chosen a leader to deliver their message to the Vice Chancellor. As he made his way through the masses to deliver the people’s message, the students cheered him on. He was a young, innocent looking and shy guy. One of a type not mostly chosen to deliver statements for such crowd considering his atomic stature. He made his way on the mini platform erected. As he stood adjacent to the Vice Chancellor and the Dean of Students, he took a long and detailed look, smiled and turned to the expectant crowd.
He yelled;
“Twoooboi !!!!!!”
“Twooooboi !!!!!!!”
“Twooooboi !!!!!!!!!”
and the crowd responded a big
“Yeeeeeiii” each time he yelled. At last, he began his long awaited speech.
“The Vice Chancellor, Dean of Students, SRC Executives and colleague students, we have marched here today not as rebels, undisciplined or a bunch of aimless students as the public are often made to believe when students embark on protests. Contrary, in a crescendo of pain, bitterness, frustration and total lancination, we are here to render our displeasure against the unprecedented mushrooming of despicable atrocities, heinous crimes and indescribable horrors perpetrated against students especially females and the general student populace mainly in the form of RAPE and ROBBERY.
Sir, we harbour a lot of pain because in pursuit of university education, we have been robbed and raped like orphans with no guardians. The question on the lips of students is, who cares about the interest of students? Today, we are demonstrating because in pursuit of university education we have been beaten by armed robbers. Sir, our worry lies not in the fact that we have been robbed or raped however, we are saddened by the unprecedented impunity at which these atrocities are committed yet we see no urgency on the part of the university authorities in tackling the canker of rape and robbery that has turned many students into the living-dead.
Yes, they are referred to as living-dead because, although they live, the fear and thinking of being robbed and raped at night has prematurely taken their lives from their walking bodies. On the 7th of December 2014, the dream of a young lady to attain a university degree suffered a painful setback when 2 out of 8 armed robbers that invaded her homstel raped her on that fateful night. Considering the fact that she had a paper the next morning, just imagine the psychological trauma such an innocent lady underwent all in the name of pursuing university degree.
Sir, it will be hypocritical on our part to claim that you have done nothing to mitigate this problem. However, when a boxer is beaten over and over again by the same opponent after days and months of constant training to defeat that opponent, it can only be assumed that the boxer’s training and methods rehearsed are simply not up to task. Sir, the obvious reality that the activities of these armed robbers continue to flourish despite the numerous security measures implemented under your leadership clearly shows how these armed robbers have won the battle.
We feel left alone like orphans to fight our own battle. We are saddened by the shameful reality that NO HELP is coming. For petty illiterates and school drop outs masquerading as armed robbers to terrorize an intellectual community like KNUST that boasts of professors, scholars, academicians and experts for years yet, no single initiative of the scholars has been able outwit these robbers is an unprecedented shame.
Today, we are scared. Scared because, if these armed robbers succeeded in robbing the official residence of our Vice Chancellor during the Christmas break despite the numerous security posts at the entrance to the University, Unity Hall, Paa Joe and a night security man at his residence then how safe are we at our private hostels who charge us millions but have no security for us? Sir, you don’t fight a 21st century war with an 18th century strategy or ammunition. Your security measures for students outside campus have failed to make any impact. Previously, these armed robbers used to act as petty phone and bag snatchers. After realizing the poor state of our security, they metamorphosized into full time armed robbers.
They have the guts to shamelessly satisfy their sexual libido on innocent ladies knowing that even if they spend the entire night raping, NO HELP will come for these helpless students. Security-wise, KNUST has fallen apart under your watch and tenure as Vice Chancellor. Sir, it is either you act now to rescue a university under siege or forever be remembered as the Vice Chancellor under whose watch robbery and rape become an accepted norm. However, you have a golden opportunity to write your name in the history books of KNUST as the man who gave us a permanent solution to the menace of robbery and rape.
We are forever ready to join hands with you in fighting this cause. We are ready to present to you our version of detailed measures we believe could be implemented to guarantee us a long and lasting solution to the menace of rape and robbery. Sir, we plead on you to organize an open forum and call for recommendations from students and all stakeholders on how best to address insecurity on and off campus.
Sir, students who refuse putting up a fight and remain silent though they are fully aware that,
GH¢40 of their parents and guardians hard earned money is being forcefully taken from them through the imposition of Vodafone SIM cards they never requested for, SIM cards they have no extra phone to accommodate or call credits they will never use must be taken serious and be heeded to when they demand nothing but SAFETY from robbery and rape and also safety for their Vice Chancellor who was recently robbed.
Students deliberately remain silent and refuse challenging the status quo, hoping that after all these monies are taken, and authorities given the free room to operate, they would be motivated to guarantee them safety from armed robbers. Our poor lives are at stake. Students are leaving the University with nothing but bad memories. Students are not leaving with memories of proper tuition or memories of a University that built their capacity. Contrary, students have left KNUST with memories of rape and robbery as university authorities failed tackling them.
Some too, are leaving KNUST with memories of university authorities that were more interested in sending students bulk messages at midnight to purchase Ice Cream at the Jubilee Mall but had no time to tackle the threat posed by armed robbers. Memories of university authorities more interested in protecting supposedly super-expensive computers for SRC elections but had no time protecting students from armed robbers. Memories of authorities who quickly jump to Facebook to write Shenanighan statements to defend their decision to seize computers that prevented queuing students from voting in an SRC election but had no time to hold a simple press conference when a final year student was raped by 2 out of 8 armed robbers. Painful and painful memories.
Sir, this is our message to you. This is the message of your students. May God bless KNUST and save us from the horrors of rape and robbery.”
After delivering his speech, the crowd of which I was part, clapped and clapped. I had no alternative than to throw my hands and clap. Upon throwing my hands I suddenly found myself sweating profusely on my bed not knowing that; all along, I have been dreaming.
