Chrisland International High School located in Opebi area of Lagos state is yet again in the news for the wrong reasons as Michael Adeniran, a father of a student in the school has called for an investigation into his daughter’s death.
The father who took to his social media account cried out about an alleged poor treatment given to his daughter, Whitney Adeniran who was said to have died during the school’s inter-house sports competition in Lagos.
According to him, his child, a 12-year-old girl died at Agege stadium on Thursday, February 9, where the school used for its sporting activities.
The father while lamenting said his child had no health condition or sickness as at when the school bus picked her up for the event.
Adeniran also said that there was no explanation given to himself and his wife from the school, added that his wife was present at the stadium, but the school did not call her attention to the incident immediately.
He wondered why the school had no ambulance or paramedics at the event, except for a “quack” nurse whom he said confessed that the child died at the stadium.
He also subsequently called on the Lagos State Government and the police to look into the matter and get justice for his daughter.
He wrote, “To the biggest shock of my life by 1 pm in the afternoon, I got a call from my wife that she was informed that our daughter slumped at the inter-house sport and she was rushed to the clinic….. My wife was at the venue even before the event started. She was never informed or called until they have conveyed our child out of the venue before they informed her.
“On arrival of my wife at the health center where they took my daughter, my daughter was lying dead with her lips black and her tongue black.
“My wife called me urgently, I left my office to the place and found my 12-year-old daughter lying dead on the ground. I asked questions about what happened to my daughter and the school authority could not get me any information as to what happened to my child in their care.
“I gave Chrisland school a healthy vibrant young girl what Chrisland returned to me is a dead child. My entire family is in deep sorrow but the school Authority claimed they know nothing about my daughter’s death and all they know is that my daughter slumped and died.
“My question is what happened to my daughter at Agege stadium? As a father, I demand answers from Chrisland International High School. I am in deep pain and sorrow right now. If you are a father you will understand my pain. My daughter is highly loved by us. We cherished her existence and we can never allow an institution to gloss over the death of our daughter.
“Since we started asking this question. The school has been asking us to back down from the autopsy and I know they know their way into the system. I am calling on the pathology department of @lasuth to please be honest with their result. Lagos State government, Nigerian Government, please intervene.”
Meanwhile, the management of Chrisland schools in its reaction has explained the incident that led to the death of one of their students, Whitney.
The school in a statement issued on Sunday said Whitney slumped in “public view and not under any hidden circumstances,” adding that she was rushed to the nearest medical facility for first aid.
“Our immediate response was to take advantage of proximity to first-aid, by identifying the nearest medical facility to take her to, where the doctor on duty, administered oxygen and every aid possible on her,” the statement said.
Chrisland appealed to the Adeniran family to establish a scientific verification of the underlying cause of her death before her burial.
“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 is deserving of our unqualified respect.
“We also prioritised according respect to the privacy of the family and were with them consistently, to mourn together. This is a painful loss for all of us,” it added.
While mourning Whitney Adeniran, the management and staff of the Lagos-based school said they feel the deep pain of this loss and their thoughts and prayers are with the family.
“As we continue to uphold the sobriety of this moment, we resist any urge to join issues on her treasured memory, in media trends.
“As we await the outcome of an independent post-mortem process, we remain unwaveringly committed to supporting the family at this critical moment and pray fervently for the fortitude to bear her painful loss,” the statement added.
It would be recalled that in 2022, Chrisland school was in the news following the emergence of a video depicting improper acts among some students of the school, who went for a trip to Dubai.
The alleged scandal happened when Chrisland School students were in Dubai in March 2022 to take part in the World School Games, a four-day annual competition involving schools from across the world.
