The Ogun State Government has dispatched a second delegation to express condolences to the family of Monday Arijo, a pupil who tragically passed away on Friday following corporal punishment administered by a teacher at Obada Grammar School in Idi-Emi, Imeko/Afon Local Government Area.
This visit comes as a post-mortem examination is being conducted by the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta to ascertain the cause of the student’s death.
The delegation, led by the Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Prof. Abayomi Arigbabu, marks the second official visit to the grieving family. After meeting with them on Tuesday, Prof. Arigbabu issued a stern warning to teachers in all state-owned primary and secondary schools, urging them to refrain from administering corporal punishment to students under their supervision.
He said: “The state government has set up a committee to look into the root cause and all other circumstances surrounding what has happened because when anything occurs, the most important thing is for us to learn from a particular situation, not only about Obada Grammar School.
“I have said this in the past; we usually have what we call stakeholders’ meetings before the beginning of every session, where I always reiterate the need to say no to corporal punishment.
“What I am saying is that this is not even about Ogun State; we are saying that this is a world standard. There are regulations against corporal punishment. That does not mean children will not behave well; we can actually discipline children. We can raise them to become whatever they want to be in life without resorting to corporal punishment.”
Arigbabu, while assuring parents that the state government will continue to monitor and hand out sanctions to teachers who are found culpable of administering corporal punishment to students under their care, noted that teachers should always endeavor to follow the rules of the game.
“When you do something and you are not caught, there is nothing we can do about it. But this time, we know about it. We are saying that teachers, as much as we don’t want to discourage them from doing their work, should do it in accordance with the rules of the game. That is what we are saying.
“The most important thing is for us to continue to monitor and also hand out sanctions whenever we find anybody culpable. That is why we are not taking this lightly; we have taken all necessary steps to unravel whatever surrounds this particular situation so that we will all be able to learn: the teachers, parents, head teachers, principals, even the government; everybody learns from it,” he said.
The commissioner also urged teachers to continue to display a high level of maturity and professionalism, adding that there are other ways of disciplining students rather than using corporal punishment, which will eventually lead to chaos.
“As trained teachers, there are a number of ways to instill discipline. We are not saying there should be indiscipline in schools; what we are saying is that there are other ways through which you can discipline a child.
“Like the incident that happened, that is what occurs when you use corporal punishment or a cane indiscriminately; you have this type of situation on your hands. We have always spoken against it,” he said.
Prof. Arigbabu assured parents that their children would receive the highest quality of education in a safe and conducive environment. He also confirmed that the state government has taken disciplinary action against the teacher and principal involved by suspending them.
“I want to assure parents that we are on top of this. The teachers who were responsible have had action taken against them; we have handed out suspensions to the teacher as well as the principal of the school. We are also taking measures to support the family with whatever is necessary to ensure that this pain is something we assist them in bearing,” he added.
Speaking on behalf of the family, Mr. Abdullateef Oduntan expressed that they do not wish to engage in a legal battle with the state government. Instead, they hope the government will take all necessary measures to prevent a recurrence of such an incident in the future.
In her comments, Mrs. Ronke Soyombo, the Special Adviser on Education to the Ogun State Governor, emphasized the government’s commitment to supporting the family during their mourning period and ensuring that similar incidents are avoided across the state.
Meanwhile, the Federal Medical Centre is currently conducting a post-mortem examination on the deceased student to determine the cause of death.
