Apostolic High School Liberia Student Sets School Building Ablaze

An 11th grader of the Apostolic Foundation High School near Vamoma Junction in Sinkor, Monrovia is currently in police custody undergoing investigation for his alleged involvement in setting ablaze the school campus.

Student Lemeo Reeves and collaborators allegedly committed the act on Monday night, 12 May thus, completely burning down the Junior High and Elementary sessions, including the entire admission and record offices of the school.

The Apostolic Foundation School is one of the biggest high schools in the Sinkor Airfield area. The suspect Reeves was picked up Monday night while escaping the scene but his collaborators are all still at large, according to police sources. Eye witnesses told the NewDawn that student Lemeo Reeves and some students from the 12th grade class were expelled recently by the administration for misconduct.

According to them, the expelled students had earlier threatened to prevent other students on campus from writing their test since they (expelled students) were prevented from taking theirs by the administration.

"Lemeo and some other students who were suspended and expelled from the school said that we will not take our test because he and his friends were expelled," a student recounted.

"We heard him saying the school will regret for expelling him and for preventing him taking his test after paying his money," another student added. But the Principal of the Apostolic Foundation High School, A. Dargbeh Johnson, denied ever suspending or expelling student Reeves and his collaborators.

Mr. Johnson explained that he has no knowledge of suspension or expulsion of student Reeves and his accomplices, saying, "I was shocked when I came from Margibi and heard that the school was on fire, before we could get on campus from the 9th grade down to the 4th grade classes and the offices had already gotten burned by the fire, but the police is in charge of the investigation."

Montserrado County District #9 Representative, Munah Pelham-Youngblood, has expressed regret for the incident. Representative Youngblood called on government through the Ministry of Education and humanitarian organizations to speedily go to the aid of the institution as students there need to complete the academic calendar.

She however condemned the burning of the school and called for speedy investigation, while attributing the act to the culture of impunity that has taken hold of Liberia. She noted that the students may have also observed that people do things that are greater than what student Lemeo Reeves and others did, and they go with impunity.

The female lawmaker called on Liberians to be respectful and law abiding, adding that that people of District #9 which the school is within are in great sympathy with the administration.