By Meleasie Goviro – EMTV News, Port Moresby
Kila Kila Secondary School has recently seen fighting break out between a number of Grade Nine and 10 students, but a member of staff has assured students and parents that it has now been contained.
Deputy Principal, Philemon Geidilo, said he wished not to make a big issue of the situation and assured parents that the fights have been contained and the student perpetrators dealt with accordingly.
He appealed to parents for their cooperation in ensuring these fights did not escalate.
Geidilo said it was unclear why the fights broke out but suspected it’stemmed from a tradition among Grade 10 students trying to prove their superiority over Grade Nines.
Around the same time last year, four Grade 10 boys were suspended and two given open transfers for beating up Grade Nine boys
This year four of Grade 10 students were suspended for instigating similar fights; one of which was referred directly to the police for damages he caused to a PMV vehicle.
Parents of Grade Nine students who feared for the safety of their children transferred them to other secondary schools immediately thereafter.
The school’s administration has arranged for parents of the suspended students to convene with the board on Friday to revisit the school agreement contract, and to discuss the penalties of the students should they instigate any more fights in the future.
Meanwhile, Grade 10 classes were also suspended indefinitely, while the rest of the school continued as normal.
Geidilo however appealed to the public not to exaggerate on the extent of the fights and for parents to remain neutral on the matter.
