Ogun Pupil’s Death: Foundation Urges Govt to Create Policy Against Corporal Punishment

Following the death of a Senior Secondary School Student 2 of Obada Secondary School, Obada, Idi-Emi, Monday Arijo, in Ogun State, a non governmental organisation, Lyceum Foundation, has urged the state government to create policy against corporal punishment on pupils in state owned primary and secondary schools.

Arijo was beaten 24 strokes of the cane and asked to observe 162 frog jumps, by a teacher, Mr Amzadjo Elijah, a corporal punishment which later resulted to the pupils’ death, forcing the government to issue immediate suspension for both the teacher and the principal of the school, Mrs Tamrat Onaolapo.

Already the state government through the Commissioner for education, Science and Technology, Prof. Abayomi Argbabu had led a delegation to pay condolence visit to the family of the late student where he sounded a note of warning that any teachers found culpable of administering corporal punishment on pupils of the state-owned primary and secondary schools, would not go unpunished.

However, the Director of Lyceum Foundation, Mrs Maureen Ola-williams, while reacting to the incident, on Thursday, appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun led administration to establish policy against administering corporal punishment on pupils in both public and primary schools.

Ola-williams spoke at a training programme in partnership with the State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, for 100 teachers drawn from various public schools across the state, on how to manage, handle and provide basic care for learners in mainstream education, held at St.Peters College, Olomore, Abeokuta.

She emphasised that some pupils are suffering from hearing and sight disease among other disabilities hence the need for the government to create the policy in order to caution the teachers from administering corporal punishment on them, advising teachers to use words on pupils rather that constant beatings

“Government should create a policy against corporal punishment of students in public schools, a policy that favours and cover that children so that when teachers comes to a school, they already know the policy that are in place, like this are their curriculum, this is how you work with them, and all these corporal punishments won’t be necessary.

“As a teacher you can manage a child and beat with love not with wickedness, but most importantly when you talked bto them words goes deeper and are stronger that cane and we also educate the teachers on the needs to find other alternatives to punish students rather than beatings” she added.