Amasiri pupils, students return to school after four-month curfew
By Amarachi Ehia, Abakaliki
Pupils and students in Amasiri community, Afikpo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, have resumed academic activities following the lifting of the four-month curfew imposed on the area by the state government after a deadly communal crisis.
The curfew was imposed on January 31, 2026, following violent clashes involving Amasiri, Akpoha and Okporojo communities in Afikpo and Edda local government areas, which reportedly claimed several lives, including four persons who were beheaded.
Although schools have reopened after the restriction was lifted last week, many classrooms remain scanty as several displaced families are yet to return to the community.
At Ekumaubaghala Memorial Secondary School, students narrated how the curfew disrupted their education and affected preparations for external examinations.
An SS3 student of the school, Idam Ugochi, said candidates preparing for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WAEC) suffered greatly during the lockdown.
According to her, students had to trek daily to neighbouring Ehugbo community under harsh weather conditions to sit for examinations because schools in Amasiri remained shut.
“We suffered much during the lockdown. There was no food and we had to trek every day under the hot sun to Ehugbo because of our WAEC exams,” she said.
Ugochi appealed to the government to release persons arrested in connection with the crisis, saying their continued detention was affecting economic and social activities in the area.
Also speaking, a JSS3 student, Okpara Daniel, lamented that students missed lessons and delayed registration for Junior NECO examinations during the curfew.
“Our schools were shut and we stopped learning. We missed first and second term activities and part of this third term before the curfew was lifted,” he said.
Junior Principal of the school, Okpara Agatha, said the crisis dealt a major setback to academic activities, noting that students lost almost two school terms because of the prolonged closure.
She explained that school authorities were making efforts to register affected students for external examinations and help them recover lost time academically.
At Amasiri Central School, only four pupils from the same family were present during a visit to the school, while many teachers and pupils were yet to return.
One of the pupils, Enyiukpo Uchenna, appealed to teachers and fellow pupils to resume classes, saying the prolonged closure had seriously affected learning in the community.
The Ebonyi State Government lifted the curfew last week after a meeting of the state security council presided over by Governor Francis Nwifuru in Abakaliki.
