Dowen College Remains Shut As Lagos Schools Resume Jan 4
Akin Olayemi
As public and private primary schools in Lagos State prepare to commence 2021/2022 academic sessions on Tuesday, January 4, a private secondary school in the highbrow Lekki area of the state, Dowen College, will remain shut until the conclusion of investigations into the death of one of it’s students, Master Sylvester Oromoni who was allegedly beaten to death and forced to drink a poisonous substance by some senior students of the school.
The Lagos State government had on December 3, 2021, ordered indefinite closure of Dowen College to enable a thorough investigation into the death of 12-year old Oromoni Junior that was murdered by senior students of the school.
Speaking on resumption of schools in the state, Assistant Director, Public Affairs unit, Ministry of Education, Ganiu Lawal, disclosed that students of Dowen College will join others to resume when the ongoing investigations into the unfortunate incident reach an advanced stage.
Lawal stated that since the matter is not strictly a state matter and with the involvement of the police and other parties, it would be ideal for all “ts” to be crossed and “is” to be dotted.
He assured, “I can assure you that very soon the issue will be resolved, but they are not resuming tomorrow.”
The state commissioner for Education, Mrs Folashade Adefisayo, in a press statement issued on Monday has condemned bullying, cultism and other vices in schools across the state.
She stated that cultism, bullying and other vices will not be tolerated in any part of the school.
While admonishing school administrators to increase counseling of students against these vices, she directed school administrators to neutralize all forms of danger students could be exposed to within the school premises.
“Devise appropriate strategies to advance teacher, student interaction in order to gain an insight and expose negative tendencies before they metamorphose into unfortunate situations. Adequate monitoring, especially as it affects boarding school students should be enforced to prevent the incidence of bullying and all other vices,” the commissioner advised.
The commissioner noted that all public and private schools in the state are expected to resume for the 2nd term of 2021/2022 school session on Tuesday 4th January, 2022 while students in boarding schools are expected back in the hostel by Monday, 3rd January, 2022.
An autopsy conducted by investigators, revealed that the deceased died of “acute lung injury due to chemical intoxication in a background of blunt force trauma.”
Meanwhile the Lagos State Police Command had released the housemaster and other staff of Dowen College who were arrested in connection with the student’s death.
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