The Lagos State Government has launched an investigation into an alleged case of child brutality at the Eva Adelaja Girls Secondary School in the Bariga area of the state.

PUNCH Metro learnt that a 14-year-old pupil of the school, Ogechi Anyalewechi, was hospitalised after being flogged by the principal of the school and over five other teachers.

The victim was said to have been punished after a prefect of the school, identified only as Zainab, complained to the principal that Ogechi returned a slap she gave her for “being rude”.

It was learnt that the principal and the teachers also took turns to slap the Senior Secondary School 2 student and also asked the prefect to slap her.

A teacher of the school, identified as Mr. Bello, was alleged to have told her to removed her tight (drawers) and flogged her on the buttocks.

Ogechi was said to have been treated at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, after the floggings.

She told PUNCH Metro that her ordeal started after the prefect challenged her for not carrying a chair.

She said, “Last Wednesday, I got to school around 8am. I was asked to take some chairs from a class to a hall where a programme for principals and school teachers would hold later in the day.

“The prefect challenged me for not participating, but I explained that I was waiting for my turn to carry the chairs.

“She said I was rude to her and ordered me to kneel down. I refused and told her I was sick. She said if I didn’t obey her, she would slap me. I said I didn’t do anything wrong and she couldn’t slap me. She said if I repeated that she would do it, and I repeated it.

“She slapped me and out of annoyance, I returned the slap. She then went to report to the principal.”

It was learnt that the principal, identified as Mrs. Coker, summoned Ogechi and ordered her to kneel down.

The victim alleged that after the principal slapped her four times, other teachers present took turns to assault her as well.

“They called the prefect and asked her to slap me in their presence and she did that four times. A teacher, Mr. Balogun, ordered me to remove my tight and he flogged me on the buttocks.

“After this, I was asked to sit for my exam in the vice principal’s office. When I was done, the principal gave the VP a letter, saying I should be made to cut some grass afterwards.”

It was gathered that although school closed officially at 3pm, the 14-year-old did not return home till 5pm.

She was said to have been taken to LASUTH, where she was treated and placed on medication.

Ogechi said, “I could not sleep at night. I was in pain and had to lie down on my stomach.”

Her mother, Mrs. Esther Anyalewechi, said she reported the matter at the Bariga Police Station, adding that she was disappointed with the reaction of the principal.

“She said my child would not become somebody in the future. I asked if she were a mother, would she allow anybody to treat her child that way. All I wanted was just an apology for the assault which landed my daughter in the hospital, but she refused,” she added.

The principal and vice principal of the school later went to the station. A police source at the station explained that a group of seven soldiers, led by a brigadier, who claimed to be the husband of the principal, stormed the station.

The source said, “All of them were in uniform. They went to see the Divisional Police Officer. The IPO was later forced to abandon the case.”

The elder brother of the victim, Joseph, said the family was prepared to sue the government to enforce the fundamental rights of his sister.

When the vice principal of the school was contacted for comment, she quickly switched off her phone after our correspondent introduce himself as a journalist from The PUNCH.

The principal could not be reached.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the case had been brought to the attention of a non-governmental organisation, Project Alert on Violence against Women.

The Executive Director of the group, Mrs. Josephine Effah-Chukwuma, said a petition had been written to the deputy governor of the state, the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education and the tutor general of the zone.

Effah-Chukwuma said Ogechi suffered both sexual and physical abuse, urging the state government to mete out appropriate punishments to the culprits.

She said, “It is sexual abuse because the report from the girl family says the teacher asked her to remove her tight before the flogging, why didn’t they flog her with her uniform on? We are told that the tight is still with the teacher.”

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Education, Fela Bank-Olemoh, said the state had started an investigation into the allegeation.

He said, “We place value on the dignity of all students in our schools and I want to assure you that we are handling this case with due diligence.”

The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, said the permanent secretary of the ministry of education had already taken over the case.




http://www.punchng.com/lagos-probes-pupils-floggings-by-principal-teachers/

I have said it and am saying it again. I will deal with anyone that will lay a finger on my child or ward at school. Your to teach them not beat them

They've not shut down the school yet?

dey better stop am b4 i born o

Who fit help me summarise all these?

See the kinda punishment they gave to dis gal....


How dare senior prefect slap a fellow student? Zainab ur own don be oh...

All the teachers suppose to be behind bars.... This is wickedness oh...


Ogechi. U need to beat zainab for me.....beat am wela...

ok

is an aberration.

U may flog my boys if they misbehave... but my girls? Please write and sign your will first!!!

The punishment is too much for her but from her story she's a bit rude too.

Nonsense! Just because she returned a slap?

Nigerians are just too s.tupid. They support jungle justice but complain about this. This is what happens when people have no value for human life.

The rate of child bully is high, seriously the school management should be sanctioned severely. How can a student turned to a slapping bag? The male teacher even ordered her to remove her tight/pant so he can sniff it. DO TO OTHERS WHAT YOU WANT ORHERS TO DO TO YOU.






Finally Don't trust anyone no matter how close that person is. Work independently and know God in all things.

Sorry could earn you a slap.
Same sorry could earn you a gentle pat. In effect, the girl must have been so rude to the point of attracting such punishment. Well, the school shouldn't have been that brutal. A decent discipline would have worked.

Lagos public schools, flogging students mercilessly since the days of Lateef Jakande.

jmichlins:
I have said it and am saying it again. I will deal with anyone that will lay a finger on my child or ward at school. Your to teach them not beat them

See u, as if dem never beat u 4 sch.

tempem:
Sorry could earn you a slap.
Same sorry could earn you a gentle pat. The girl must have been so rude to the point of attracting such punishment. The school shouldn't have been that brutal. A decent discipline would have worked.

MY point exactly. Some students can frustrate teachers

Good they should be taught a lesson..the girl was clearly wrong,we all know it was rude of her to return the slap but what happened to flogging on the Palm??or kneeling for a long period?..the secondary school I attended don't allow the use of canes but everyone was disciplined..God help any human being whether able bodied or or disabled that'll use a stick on my baby girl.

OK. Buhari should b probed?

This is nonsense. That school better be shut down.

acunon:
Who fit help me summarise all these?

you will be quick to question the inability of the president to read a thousand page budget but can not read a thousand words news

ok na

everything should be done in moderation

when I was in secondary school, I got into trouble occasional. some I was flogged some manual labour was given as punishment

go to a school where punishment has being abolished and see how children misbehave

I would not send my ward to a school where they don't flog.

all I ask is for it to be done in moderation

Let is all the details ,including the army general that went to police station to protect the principal.. the police that fail to detail her needed to be brought to book..Abused every where ..

Though it is wrong for the school to have disciplined her to the extent where she had to be hospitalized, but it is obvious the girl is rude. For slapping the prefect, she is daring the school authority

For many of you critizing the school, I want to let you know that learning comes with discipline. Many students nowadays are over pampered by their parents and the first point of discipline becomes the school. It is this same parents that would complain if the girl start to fail in her academics. A girl that won't respect her teachers won't learn from them.

Let us have all the details ,including the army general that went to police station to protect the principal.. the police that fail to detail her needed to be brought to book..Abused every where ..