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| Gaskiya college | credits: |
Twelve pupils of Gaskiya Senior College,
Ijora, Lagos State, are currently undergoing punishments for holding
fellowship beyond the time allowed in the school and allegedly
assaulting the principal.
The students were also branded
“cultists” by the school principal, Mrs Oghenetega Sobowale, who signed
the letters that informed them of their punishments.
While one of the students was expelled,
five were placed on indefinite suspension.The six others were given
lesser punishment. The suspended students have been missing third term
examinations currently being written by their schoolmates
The students involved are Ejiro John,
Otega John, Michael Changa, Valentine Okoye, Faith Okolie, Chidinma
Chidozie, Jennifer Emmanuel, Eunice Ikpesu, Okiemute Jeremiah, Goodluck
Kalu, Samuel Egwu and Rebecca David.
Otega, 16-year-old SS2 student, said it was a break down in communication that caused their problem.
He said, “We usually hold fellowship on
Tuesdays after school hours by 3.30pm. The principal had told us to
always end it at 5pm.
“On April 2, 2013, while the 12 of us
were praying, the school guard entered and told us that the principal
said we should end the fellowship immediately. My brother, Ejiro, told
the guard we were rounding off. But the guard told the principal that we
refused to leave.”
Otega said the principal came into the
class as they were saying the closing prayer and later pounced on
Jennifer Emmanuel who was “praying fervently.”
He said, “Jennifer was not aware that
the principal was standing beside her and she mistakenly hit the
principal as she was praying.
“Not long after, a teacher came and wrote our names and classes. He told us to bring our parents the next day.”
Another of the affected students, Ejiro,
said, “On the following day, we were called out during the morning
assembly. A teacher announced to the school that we were cultists.
“Later in the day, our parents had a
meeting with the Principal, Vice-Principal Mr. Omonijo, and other
members of staff. The principal refused our pleas. She also warned the
teachers against pleading for us.”
Another affected student, Okiemute Jeremiah, said, like her, all the SS3 students involved were prefects of the school.
She said, “We were removed from our
various positions by the principal. Mrs. Sobowale also banned the
fellowship and gave us a week suspension. She told our parents that the
case would be reported to Education District V.”
Chidinma Chidozie, who also spoke with
our correspondent, said, “On the second day of third term, we received
letters from the principal that five SS2 students involved had been
suspended indefinitely. Jennifer Emmanuel, also in SS2, was expelled.”
The remaining six SS3 students were
issued letters titled, ‘Re: Emergence of cultism in school’, in which
they were accused of “insurgency.”
Copies of the letters, which were shown
to our correspondent, stated that the SS3 students would only be allowed
to write Senior Secondary Certificate Examination if their parents
accompanied them to school on each examination day.
One of the parents, Mrs. Beauty John, lamented the fate of her children.
She said, “We have pleaded with the
principal and we have written letters of apology to her. We copied the
letters and sent them to Education District V. But all to no avail.
Mrs Goodness Chidozie, said she had been praying for divine intervention because he daughter, Chidinma, was still in SS2.
Okiemute’s father, Mr. Ojagbube
Jeremiah, said, “My daughter missed one SSCE paper because I couldn’t go
with her on the examination day. She is a good Christian, but the the
government has it in its record that she is a cultist. I want her name
cleared.”
Michael Changa’s mother, Mrs. Jacinta Changa, said, “This is a serious case and I want Governor Babtunde Fashola to intervene.”
When our correspondent called the
principal on the telephone, she said she would rather speak in person.
However, she told our correspondent in her office, “The case is no
longer in my hands. It is now handled by Education District V. I am not
authorised to speak.”
The Lagos State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Lateef Ibirogba, said he was aware of the students’ expulsion and suspensions.
He said, “We will investigate the case
of Gaskiya Senior College. The government will not allow the students to
be unjustly punished if they didn’t commit any offence. However, I
want to state that if the students were actually Christians, who are
morally upright, I find it difficult to believe that one of them will
mistakenly slap the principal.
“While we won’t allow the students to be
unjustly punished, we will not also allow the principal to be
ridiculed. We will not tolerate indiscipline.”
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