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A colony of bats has invaded the only teachers' bungalow and
classrooms at the Asuboi Municipal Assembly basic schools in the
Offinso South Municipality of the Ashanti Region.
Some teachers of the school are already contemplating vacating their
posts if the situation remains unchanged.
Asuboi, a farming community, came to the limelight in 2010 after
investigations by Nhyira FM's Ohemeng Tawiah revealed more than 70
percent of residents were infected with river blindness as they
battled invasion of black flies, carriers of onchocerciasis.
Ohemeng visits the community again after four years and reveals
teachers have been forced to live under inhumane conditions.
Teachers there share habitation with bats as a 4-unit each teachers'
bungalow housing twenty teachers in the local primary and junior high
schools serve as the home for a colony of African fruit bats.
It is common to hear the screech and squeal of the bats who defy the
presence of their human hosts as they make their way the ceilings,
their hideouts during the day.
Because their huge numbers parts of the ceiling in the rooms have been
destroyed.
Living in the teachers' bungalow is a misery as life there has been
reduced to the strong odour accompanying the presence of the bats.
The bats, according to the teachers, easily drop faeces in their rooms
– bringing with it parasites, as well as insects that sting them at
night.
The teachers have no option than to coexist with the mammals though in protest.
A distressed teacher revealed: "Their [bats] faeces are everywhere and
then the odour too is too bad. You can't even stand it within a minute
or two. So sometimes we have to come out and sit outside because of
the odour from the animals.
"Most of the time, they come out in the evening so if you don't eat
early and you wait for them to come out, those animals can enter the
food or drop some faeces in your food. When you are sleeping in the
rooms, sometimes they drop their faeces in the rooms that we sleep and
sometimes too we find them on our shirts".
After weeks of petitioning the Municipal Education Directorate, the
situation remains the same as the bats have now begun invading the
classrooms and headmasters office as well.
Teachers fear is heightened by the outbreak of Ebola along the West
African coast with bat believed to be hosts.
"Sometimes we do think of leaving the school and maybe going somewhere
because of the conditions we have here…It's not easy. And then, now
that there is an Ebola virus or outbreak, sometimes it becomes
difficult for us", a worried teacher said.
Headteacher of the local Primary school, Amponsah Antwi, wants support
for the teachers.
"In the night you can't sleep. They [bats] make a lot of noise. We
wrote a letter to the District Assembly and the Ghana Education
Service to come and assist us but still. So we want somebody to help
us so that we can have a nice stay", Mr Amponsah appealed.
But Municipal Chief Executive of Offinso South, Baffuor Kesse-Amankwaa
claims the teachers' concerns have not come to his attention.
He has assured the assembly will address the challenge.
Credit: Myjoyonline.com
