Edo closes 4 schools, detains head teacher over death of 12-year-old

The Edo State Government, on Wednesday, revoked the licences of two private schools following the death of a 12-year-old pupil, Nathan Paul Spencer.

The government also apprehended the head teacher of one of the affected schools.

In addition, two other private schools are to be closed for allegedly demanding unauthorised fees from over 200 students without the government’s approval.

The heads of these schools reportedly collaborated to collect money from the students, redirect payments into the state’s internally generated revenue account, and use the location as a centre for the examination.

Paddy Iyamu, the State Commissioner for Education, made this known during a condolence visit to the parents of the deceased pupil. He explained that the child died on his way to sit for the First School Leaving Certificate Examination last Saturday.

He said, “The Edo State Government has shut down two schools after a 12-year-old student, Nathan Paul Spencer, died while on his way to sit for the Middle Basic Assessment Examination on Saturday, the 5th of July, 2025.”

“The tragedy occurred during a heavy downpour that caused severe flooding in the area. An investigation revealed that the management of the pupil’s school had registered him to write the examination at a different school without informing his parents.”

“Furthermore, it was revealed that the head of the school had taken the registration fee from Nathan’s parents in Ovia Local Government and had negligently taken the child to another school in Egor Local Government for the examination.”

“Tragically, Nathan fell into a gutter and drowned during the heavy rain when he was trekking from the local government to another.”

The Commissioner, who expressed dismay over the incident, conveyed Governor Monday Okpebholo’s heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family.

He added that the state government would ensure that all those responsible for the pupil’s death are brought to justice.