The administration of Sierra Leone Muslim Congress Senior Secondary has yesterday issued a press release addressing the issues surrounding the arrest and detention of 52 pupils of the school accused to have involved in a riot last month.

The school stated that they would like to clear the air on the incidence that took place at their Kissy Mess-Mess campus on the night of Sunday 27 March and early hours of morning 28 March 2022.

They noted that as part of the school’s Foundation Day/Prize giving and Thanksgiving ceremony that were slated for 28 March and 29 March respectively, the scouts held a born-fire night at the school ground, which is an annual tradition of the school.

“While they were celebrating the burn-fire for this year, a group of boys suspected to be members of cliques and gangs from various schools around Freetown infiltrated their ranks with the intent to wreck havoc,” Congress stated.

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The school furthered that the clique boys were immediately dispelled by the scouts from the school campus and were seen running down the hill that night towards the Main Motor Road and Brima Lane.
They added that after a while the Police came to the school compound and ordered that the burn-fire be stopped, which the scouts complied with.

The school noted that after a while the police reported that some boys from the school had descended on the Brima Lane Junction and were snatching people’s phone, entering shops and carting away wares.

“According to eyewitnesses, the police had to resort to the use of tear gas and live ammunition to disperse the hooligans but no arrest was made at the scene,” they stated.

The however noted that while the scouts had gone to sleep in their camping tents, the police came back to the school campus firing tear gas and live ammunition.

“They woke up the scouts, beat them up, threw them into truck and took them into detention cells at the Jui Police Barracks. The police accused the scouts of having committed the violence and they were later charged to court,” the school stated.

“After careful examination of the evidence before the court, the Magistrate acquitted and discharged the 52 scouts who were standing trial.”

The school further encouraged parents and guardians to sustain the membership of their children and ward and not allow this isolated incident to affect the positive impact scouting has created on their children and the nation.

Meanwhile, the school noted that they were concerned about the following rumours:

1. That our school children are bent on a public demonstration wearing black attire.
2. That our school children have also planned to attack and destroy police facilities/installations.
3. That the school is hosting political meeting at night.

“Those rumours are not only false and baseless but are calculated to smear and damage the good image and reputation of the Sierra Leone Muslim Congress Secondary School,” they stated.