The Lagos State Ministry of Education has ordered the temporary closure of Chrisland School, Opebi-Ikeja, following the reported death of a student of the school, 12-year-old Whitney Adeyemi on Saturday.
In a statement on Sunday, the Commissioner for Education, Mrs Folasade Adefisayo said the closure was ordered pending the outcome of a full investigation into the unfortunate incident.
On behalf of the State Ministry of Education, Adefisayo commiserated with Dr Michael Adeyemi Adeniran and Mrs Blessing Adeniran, parents of Whitney, and prayed for the repose of her soul.
“We also note the impact of this unfortunate event on family, friends and acquaintance of Whitney and call for calm as we assure that no effort will be spared in investigating the incident”, the Commissioner stated.
According to her parents, Whitney was said to have died during the school’s activities at Agege Stadium.
In the video on her Instagram page on Sunday, the tearful mother said that she was told her daughter slumped and had been rushed to the hospital.
Mrs Adediran said she immediately rushed to the hospital but had a hard time locating it because she was given the wrong address. After she finally located where her daughter was, she said Whitney was already dead and her lips and tongue were black.
But a statement by the Chairman of Chrisland School’s Advisory Board, Ike Ofuokwu, Whitney “slumped in public view and not under any hidden circumstances.
“Our immediate response was to take advantage of proximity by identifying the nearest medical facility to take her to, where the doctor on duty administered oxygen and every aid possible on her”.
According to the statement, the student opted not to participate in the inter-house sports match past “for reasons we were not very sure about”.
The statement further stated: “However, on discretion, we respected her decision to err on the side of caution because, on the 20th of January, it is in our records that she complained about not-too-buoyant health and we immediately contacted her parents.
“Even as her family made funeral plans for an immediate burial, we differed politely and reiterated the need to establish a scientific verification of the underlying cause of death as mandatorily required in circumstances like this. We immediately notified regulatory stakeholders and agencies to allow for a comprehensive evaluation and assessment of the developments.
“In spite of the compelling imperatives to fill any information gaps in public space, we stopped short of making any media sensation out of this because the deceased in question was a minor and deserving of our unqualified respect. We also prioritised according respect to the privacy of the family and were with them consistently to mourn together”.
Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin confirmed the incident saying, “the matter was reported to the police immediately after the incident occurred.
“The case is presently at the State Criminal Investigation Department and an autopsy is going to be carried out to know the circumstances that led to her death. That’s all the update I have for now”.
