There is a negative trend of school children dying in controversial circumstances while in school, either out of electrocution, eating or engaging in sporting activities. In this report, PAUL OKAH wonders if they’ve become an endangered species.
In Nigeria and other parts of Africa, the common expectation is for children to grow up and take care of their parents, especially in giving them befitting burials. Therefore, it is always devastating for parents to read news of their children dying in their prime, with many often suffering the psychological trauma of living to bury their children, instead of the other way round.
While some parents have been accused of negligence and causing the deaths of their children, it has become worrisome to read about the death of school children in schools, especially when the schools are expected to know better.
Recent cases
On April 24, a four-year-old student of BrickHall School, Kaura, near Games Village, Abuja, Master Miguel Ovoke, died allegedly as a result of choking while eating beef, according to a medical report by Excel Specialist Hospital in Abuja.
The medical report, which was signed by Dr. Akinwande Ajayi, on behalf of the medical director, revealed that Ovoke was brought in “on account of aspiration on meat while feeding at school” and that the medical team, upon examination, found that the boy’s pupils were fixed and dilated, with a non-reactive response to light.
The report further indicated that Ovoke’s peripheral pulses were “impalpable, blood pressure was unrecordable, and there was no cardiopulmonary activity or respiratory excursions” and that all efforts of the medical team to resuscitate him failed, hence, in conclusion, he was “brought in dead.”
There were allegations by the family that Ovoke died of electrocution as the school, owned by Senator Joy Emodi, who was a member of the 5th and 6th Senate before she served as Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on National Assembly Matters.
On February 28, a 15-year-old student of Government Science Secondary School, Pyakasa, Maitama, in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Meshach Ogwuche Agaba, was electrocuted while fetching water in the school premises.
According to reports, the tragic incident happened at about 7:30am around the water tap close to the wall with barbed wire in the school premises as Meshach slipped and held on to the barbed wire that was said to have contact with a naked electric cable.
He was rushed to Maitama District Hospital for treatment, where he was later confirmed dead by doctors, with the FCT police spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, confirmed the incident on March 1.
Veritas student
Similarly, on April 30, a 100-level student of Veritas University, Abuja, identified as Mr. Joshua Èjuojo Daniel-Ejigbo, in the Department of Computer Sciences, reportedly died after he slumped at the university’s gymnasium.
“All attempts by the medical team, led by the Chief Medical Director, to revive him failed and was pronounced dead”, the university’s Vice Chancellor, Prof. Hyacinth Ichoku, said in a statement.
However, in viral media reports, a family member alleged that no fewer than five stab wounds were found on the back and ribs side of the student.
“The school laid him down on the stretcher in the mortuary where they dumped him at Fatima Hospital, Bwari before we transferred the body to the mortuary at the National Hospital in Abuja. The body was prepared and handed over to the parent as if nothing happened. When we turned him over, blood started coming out of his mouth,” the source added.
The spokesperson for the FCT Police Command, Josephine Adeh, said the FCT police commissioner, Bennett Igweh, had ordered an immediate investigation into the incident, but there was no update on the death as of the time of filing this report.
Parents’ agonies
In an interview with Blueprint Weekend, aunt to Meshach, who pleaded anonymity, said his death was avoidable and that her sister, Funke Akosile Ogwuche, was devastated and couldn’t speak with the media on the incident, revealing the deceased was buried within days.
She said, “My sister is devastated with the death of Meshach Agaba Ogwuche. It was an avoidable death. He was there on scholarship, a very bright and intelligent boy. Even the proprietress was nonchalant. There was no sign of remorse. He was rushed to the hospital with his friend who tried to save him but to the glory of God, the friend survived. But Meshach died even before they got to the hospital. The boy told his mom that he’s not going back to the school as he kept on crying and calling out to Meshach. Imagine the psychological trauma.
“However, Meshach’s parents didn’t press any charges. They’re believers and left everything to God. The school only promised to care of the burial rites, which the mother bluntly rejected as that will not bring back her son. It was a big shock because he left the house on Monday and died on Wednesday, February 28, and was buried on his birthday on Saturday, March 2. The cable wire that electrocuted Meshach was from a garden close to the school. He was just 15 years old.”
She said further, “I suggest that compulsory and routine check-ups should be done on a regular basis. Those guilty of any such incident should be properly punished and made public to create more awareness and also as a way of putting a total stop to negligence in our schools. To me, government officials will worsen everything if they are responsible for the investigation. If we have private officials that will do the job, then I think it will be better. They should make sure the culprits face the law.
“Also, certain rules should be set by the Education board to ensure total safety of pupils and they should state categorically that if anything should happen to a child and if a child dies in their care, other than any terminal illness they parents are aware of, such school and the owner should face the law. This will reduce negligence and carelessness.”
Similarly, in a viral video watched by this reporter on social media, during a lone protest to BrickHall School, the mother of Miguel Ovoke, identified only as Mrs. Ovoke, said she paid N350, 000 as fees for her deceased son, with 18 students in one class, but that the school was going on as if nothing had happened because it is owned by Senator Joy Emodi.
Also, during an interview with a TV station, monitored by this reporter, the mother, Mrs. Ovoke, said they ran an autopsy and discovered he was electrocuted and did not die out of meat choking, saying the death was covered up.
Nevertheless, on May 10, Ovoke was buried at the Gudu Cemetery in Abuja, with the family saying it would set up an educational foundation that would provide scholarships for indigent students in Miguel’s memory, while Brickhall School said it would support the foundation by granting scholarships to selected under-privileged children.
Death too many
Speaking with this reporter, a human rights activist and Abuja- based legal practitioner, Kingsley Ohakwe, said the death of school children “is getting out of hand” and that “there is a need for parents to take legal action against culpable schools, especially as the deaths are avoidable.”
He said, “The problem we have in Nigeria is the issue of parents not pressing charges or taking legal action once the rights of their children are violated or they lose their child to negligent schools. Oftentimes, parents don’t even know their rights as they are always pressured to settle out of court, with the belief that no court case can bring back their deceased child. As a result, culpable schools get out of the legal situation and the quandary continues.
“If you can recall, Miguel Ovoke and Meshach Agaba are not the only children to have died in schools that were supposed to guarantee their safety. On February 9, 2023, 12-year-old Whitney Adeniran died of electrocution at Chrisland International School in Lagos, during an inter-house sports event. On May 16, 2022, a Junior Secondary School two student of Simple Faith Schools, Agbara, Lagos state, Oluwatobiloba Emmanuel-Amidu, was caned to death before his 12th birthday by a teacher for not completing his mathematics assignment. It is common to hear of such avoidable death in Lagos schools. No one can forget the case of Sylvester Oromoni, the 12-year-old student of Dowen College, Lekki, Lagos, who also died in school.
“In Abuja, it seems a regular thing too as both primary, secondary and university students have died in strange circumstances. The latest is that of a university student, who was stabbed to death, according to the family, while the school claims he slumped while exercising in the gym. So, I will advise families of victims not to take such issues lying down. The law has no respect for any person and is there to enforce their rights. It is as a result of not going to court or pressing charges that encourages negligent schools to be careless with people’s children put in their care. By the time some schools are closed down permanently and culprits jailed, others will sit up. Death of school children has become a matter of urgent concern that the federal government must look into.”
