The controversial death of 12-year-old student of Dowen College in Lekki, Lagos state, Sylvester Oromoni Junior, has revived agitations for investigation into allegation of wrongful deaths, maltreatment and bullying of boarding school students in Abuja, Akwa Ibom, Rivers and other parts of the country. Are boarding schools now death chambers, PAUL OKAH asks in this report.
To the average Nigerian, bubbling Master Sylvester Oromoni Junior, a boy of 12-year-old, would have been alive today had it been his Delta state-based politician parents did not make the “mistake” of sending him to study in faraway Dowen College in Lekki, Lagos state, where he was reportedly bullied and allegedly killed by fellow students in controversial circumstances for refusing to join a cult group.
On Wednesday, December 1, a Twitter user identified as Perrie (@perrisonoromoni, first broke the news of the death of Omoroni, attaching the tweet with the photo of the deceased, which was later taken up by human rights activists and well-meaning Nigerians.
He wrote: “This is my 12 years old cousin that was beaten to death at a school that cost over 1 million naira. They called my uncle that he got injured playing football. Reaching the hospital, it was confirmed that he was being bullied and beaten up, causing internal damages. They tried to put him in a cult, he refused and they killed him. In a secondary school. They literally beat him to death.
“The 12-year-old was battered on Friday, but died on Tuesday, after a series of tests and x-rays indicated that he sustained internal injuries. The school management had reached out to Sylvester Oromoni Senior, the deceased’s father, a Delta State politician, claiming the boy sustained injuries while playing football at the school.
“We’re from Delta state, but he goes to a boarding school in Lekki. They called my uncle that his son was injured when he was playing football. Reaching the hospital, it was confirmed that he was being bullied and beaten up, causing internal damages. After tests and x-rays, it was confirmed he was beaten up badly. He died yesterday (Tuesday) morning and his entire body was swollen.
“The deceased had previously complained about pressures to join a cult group, but the young Oromoni only informed his parents while in the hospital. Before his death, he reportedly said the school’s cult members threatened to kill him if he reported them. Before passing, he said they’d been pressuring him to join a cult. He was admitted on Friday. He said they were going to kill him if he talked.”
Public outcry
Following the public outcry, pressures and reactions elicited by the tweet, Lagos state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, ordered the closure of Dowen College on Friday, December 3, detailing security agencies to investigate the incident to a logical conclusion.
Subsequently, on December 6, the family detailed human rights activist, Femi Falana (SAN), to handle the case, while the Lagos state police revealed on December 7 that it arrested three out of the five students mentioned by the deceased as having beaten him up. This is as the House of Representatives directed the Inspector General of Police to investigate all victims of crimes in boarding schools.
Previous incidents
Oromoni was not the first student to have died controversially in a boarding school as the dust was yet to settle on the case of a 14-year-old female student of Premiere Academy in Lugbe, FCT, Keren-Happuch Akpagher, who was allegedly raped to death by a yet to be identified staff of the school. A used condom was reportedly found in her private part.
Similarly, an 11-year-old student of Deeper Life High School, Akwa Ibom, Don Davis, is still battling to stay alive, after he was allegedly sexually assaulted by seniors.
Nigerians fume
Speaking on the death of Oromoni and other victims, in her verified Facebook page on Friday, December 3, alongside pictures of victims, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate in the 2019 governorship election in Kogi state, Natasha Hadiza Akpoti, detailed the atrocities committed by students and teachers in boarding schools, demanding for justice for victims.
She said: “Sylvester Oromoni, the 12-year-old student of Dowen College, Lagos, died from internal injuries sustained by torture from students for failing to join a cult. Don Davis, the 11yr old student of Deeper Life High School, Akwa Ibom, was sexually assaulted by seniors, while the school tried covering it up. I am glad the fighting spirit of his mother pushes on for justice.
“Keren Akpagher, the 14-year-old student of Premier Academy, Lugbe Abuja, died of sepsis earlier this year. A used condom was found inside of her, possibly raped severely by a staff (security or teacher). She died before she could build up courage to mention names. The school stonewalled the investigation.
“These three innocent souls are our children. We must all join voices and support the parents to call for criminal charges to be pressed against the schools and those identified as collaborators. Thorough investigation should commence, leaving no stone unturned; no matter how highly placed the parents of the erring wards are.
“We need the establishment of a body under the supervision of the Federal ministry of education to monitor, supervise and evaluate activities of all private schools (boarding and day) in Nigeria. There is need for the expansion of Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC Nigeria) activities to oversee activities of private schools especially boarding facilities.”
She added: “FCCPC can, amongst others, pay an impromptu visit to boarding schools to inspect the quality of food served. I remember the watery beans at FGC Idoani and the GGUSS. Oboroke’s watery akamu with chippings of overnight Amala as the same poorly washed pot is used for everything.
“Pay a visit to the hostels, especially at night, to see the students sleeping on bare floor, kneeling all night in the cold as punishment, bunk-shocking, dirty toilets, lack of drinking water, not to talk of bathing water, etc. Interview students randomly to unravel and intercept the torture and sexual abuse by fellow students and /or teachers.
“Believe me, there are so many more students suffering abuse in boarding and day schools, but have had fear imbibed in them that they are too scared to speak up. ‘A cry for help is a death sentence,’ the victims are often warned.
“So, take a good look at these three faces. Two dead, one alive. Even the boy, Don, that’s alive will never be the same again. I’ll plead, let’s join voices and forces to have these schools support the call for justice and ensure stringent measures are in place to curb the evil of bullying and abuse.”
Commercialisatio of education
Speaking with Blueprint Weekend, a social commentator, Johnson Edeh, said that many proprietors of private schools thrive in collecting fees from parents and students, without paying attention to their welfare, suggesting the deployment of undercover security agencies to monitor activities in boarding schools.
He said: “The best way to get evidence in those schools for proper justice is to register undercover security agents in all the schools in Nigeria by the FG. Let them pretend to be students. Collect forms, get admitted in the schools and get to work as secret agents. They will get all the evidence to prosecute those beasts in the schools sexually assaulting students.
“We should also teach our children to be bold and courageous too. This country is becoming something else. You send your children to school with hard earned money, yet live with the fear of the unknown. Who is to be blamed? You do all your possible best to train your children at home, yet they go outside and get polluted by the rotten ones.”
Parental failure
On her part, a civil servant, Alhaja Fatima Yusuf, told Blueprint Weekend that there are always tell tale signs of children being abused, advising parents to pay close attention to their children for safety purpose, alleging that students are constantly fed poisons in boarding schools.
She said: “If your son or daughter suddenly stay too long in the restroom, if they start locking themselves up in their rooms, if they avoid eye contacts with you (if they used to), if they get irritated and angry unnecessarily, if they start exhibiting strange sleeping routine, like waking up with shouts or shocks, have some talks with them confidentially. They need you.
“There are statutory supervisory roles for state and federal ministries of education for oversight functions to schools, from primary to tertiary institutions. This is to ensure not just standards of education, but also for the safety and well being of the students. However, corruption has not allowed the government officials to do their jobs well.
“In some of the schools, where schools fees are over a million per term, these children are fed with junk and unwholesome can foods containing so much preservative chemicals that potentially expose them to cancer later in life. We need government intervention in all schools to correct these anomalies. The government officials should publish quarterly supervisory reports that would make them liable where and when anomaly is detected or occurs.”
Teachers’ take
Also speaking, a secondary school teacher in Wuse, FCT, Mrs Jennifer Eze, said that boarding schools have become harbinger of death, advising parents to train up their children in day schools.
She said: “As a teacher, who is known for discipline and moral lessons, the challenges I face from parents and even my colleagues are enormous.
“This society detests teachers who try to correct or punish students for wrongdoings. Parents’ responses are dampening our morale by the day. Students do bring phones to school, watching pornographic stuffs in the classroom.
“If you seize their phones, you will be castigated and fought by parents. This country, with the crop of students we have in our schools, has no future.
“Personally, I am against boarding schools, because you cannot shift your responsibility as a parent to another fellow all in the name of your career. If the man is busy, the woman should be there for the children. Both of you should not be busy looking for money at the detriment of your children. In Nigeria of today, you can hardly get faithful staff, not with the peanut salaries that most schools are paying. They are only using the job as a stepping stone for greater offer.
“Most of the private schools in Nigeria are after money and nothing else. They will not employ enough and competent staff; just to make excess profit. So, all hands must be on deck to put an end to this. FG, human rights activists, etc, should go after these schools and make them face the music. Every school and everyone involved must be prosecuted.”
Parental guidance as panacea
Similarly, a secondary school teacher in Jabi, Mr Theophilus Nathaniel, said that parents should send their children to day schools in order to effectively monitor their progress and not ship them off to die of moral decadence in boarding schools.
He said: “I’m in the system. I am a Mathematics/Computer teacher at Government Science College, Abuja and its only girl’s school. Although we do have one or two issues, but, to be frank, there are nothing compared to all these problems recorded in private boarding schools. I would always prefer to take my child to government owned secondary schools: either boarding/day.
“I stand to be corrected, but since the advent of private schools in Nigeria, secondary schools have suffered great moral decadence and gross atrocities. Many parents often take their kids to boarding schools, simply because they’re avoiding responsibilities and also many of the children at boarding schools are products of broken homes.
“There are so many imbalances when it comes to shaping a child within the secondary school cadre. Majority of the shortfalls are mostly found within the private boarding schools. To a large extent, there are little of such terrible atrocities within the government owned schools, because discipline and strict measures are being put in place without petting any child of whosoever to practice rubbish.”
Dowen College speaks
After initially denying culpability in the death of Oromoni, in a volte-face statement on December 4, signed by its board and management, as a result of pressure and public outcry, Dowen College condoled with the family.
The statement read, “The deceased was dearly loved by his teachers, his fellow students and he was a beacon of light for the school,” adding that his untimely death was “tragic and unfortunate and requires a thorough and proper investigation and that Dowen College is fully committed to this.”
The statement further said: “We are assisting the authorities to get to the bottom of this heartbreaking incident. The first steps taken by the school, in conjunction with the Ministry of Education, has been the immediate closure of the school to aid in the investigation. Understandably, at this time of intense grief and suffering, emotions are raw and tensions are high.
“We pray that God, who alone knows how to comfort the sorrowing, will comfort Sylvester’s family and all those who loved and knew him. We commiserate with the Oromoni family and the students of Dowen College who have lost a friend and fellow student.
“This is a traumatic experience. We assure our parents that the school is taking steps to ensure the safety and security of their children and wards.
“This is paramount. Every child is valued at Dowen College and their health and well-being is of the utmost priority to the school.”
Reps seek strict guidelines
Following widespread concerns over Oromoni’s death, the House of Representatives, on Tuesday, urged the Federal Ministry of Education to set out strict guidelines for the operations of boarding schools across Nigeria.
The House, while condemning in strong terms, recent incidences of inhuman treatment and abuses happening in boarding schools across the country, mandated the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to immediately commission and take over the investigation, prosecute and punish the perpetrators of the identified heinous crimes.
This came Tuesday, following a motion, calling for condemnation of such acts in boarding schools, sponsored by member representing Oruk Anam/Ukanafun federal Constituency, Unyime Idem, who noted that while there is no way to make a broad conclusion as to whether boarding schools are good or bad, some recent developments in Nigeria have triggered public outrage as many share their experiences.
He said: “The parents of the deceased said he was attacked for declining to join what he termed as the secondary school’s ‘cult group’ dominated by older boys at Dowen College in Lekki, Lagos.
“Another incident leading to the death of 14-year-old Karen-Happuch Aondodoo Akpagher of Premier Academy, Lugbe, Abuja on the 22nd day of June 2021, is one that left many heartbroken. Her parents narrated how their daughter was sexually assaulted and later died of complications as a result of a condom left in her private part. Six months later, there is still no news of a suspect being arrested.”
