Pascal Arogorn Ibe
The mother of a student of the Deeper Life High School who was abused sexually has alleged threats and pressure from undisclosed quarters asking her to drop the case.
Mrs Deborah Okezie’s 11-year-old child was said to have been sexually molested by some senior students in the school located in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital.
She had posted a video on Facebook where she alleged that her son, a JSS1 student, was sexually abused by his seniors when he was moved from his hostel to another hostel originally meant for senior students.
Okezie noted that the boy was frequently starved and beaten up by the senior students and in the video, she compared a picture of her son before and after he went to the boarding house, stating that the child now looked malnourished.
The victim who recounted some of the abuses he was subjected to, alleged that he was forced to starve for days, beaten for bedwetting, and also sent to a hostel for senior students where he was also maltreated.
The video resulted in the suspension of the principal of the school by the authorities while the Akwa Ibom state government has launched an investigation into the incident.
Mrs Okezie had agreed to speak with Channels Television on the incident but later stopped picking calls from our correspondent over threats and pressure from undisclosed quarters.
The school which is located along the Idoro Road in Uyo is currently under lock and key.
In an interview with Channels Television, a sociologist at the University of Uyo, Dr Aniekan Brown, analysed the short-term and long-term psychological impact of the incident and the steps to be taken in the circumstance.
He said the ugly incident could discourage the victim and other children from going to school, adding that the long-term effects could mar the victim’s future if not properly managed.
Brown, who is also the coordinator of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Calabar Zone, commended the state government for setting up a panel to investigate the case.
He called for more vigilance by the management of schools to properly monitor the activities of students to prevent an occurrence of such an ugly incident.
The Deeper Life High School, which has 21 campuses across the country with its headquarters in Lagos, is owned by a Pentecostal church – Deeper Christian Life Ministry.
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