sixteen Ogun Students In Detention For Destroying School Property, Parents Protest

Sixteen scholars of Ibafo Community High School, Ibafo, Ogun State, are in police custody after a combat among instructors of the college and the scholars on Thursday, October 20, 2022, which brought about the destruction of the faculty assets.

Parents and siblings of the sixteen college students and different mother and father took to the streets on Friday, October 28, 2022 over the detention, lamenting that their youngsters have been underage and unlawfully stored withinside the police custody. The protesting moms additionally visited The PUNCH.

Speaking to one of the dad and mom, Mrs Suliyat Kolapo, she said that her sixteen-year-vintage daughter changed into arrested over the robbery of a waste basket withinside the faculty after the combat. She said, “When they got here to arrest her on Saturday, they claimed that she became in ownership of a waste basket and in all honesty, she in no way added domestic whatever of the sort. It’s her 7th day in custody. They took her away in handcuffs. The authorities have to please come to our aid.”

She referred to that her daughter commenced menstruating on the police cell, including that she became referred to as through the police to convey her underclothes and menstrual pads.

Another parent, Mrs Kemi Lateef, advised Sunday PUNCH that her sixteen-year-antique daughter, Aliyat Lateef, turned into amongst the ones detained.

She referred to, “On Friday, my daughter ran domestic pronouncing that they have been being pursued with the aid of using the police over a combat that broke out withinside the faculty, and that her exceptional buddy turned into arrested. In the early hours of Saturday, October 22, the police visited our domestic and took away my daughter in handcuffs over robbery and destruction of faculty’s assets.

“Truthfully, she knowledgeable me on Friday that she took one of the books which become thrown out via way of means of the students combating withinside the college to study and claimed that she saved it at the ground after studying the tale book.”

A businesswoman and mom to one of the students, Mrs Salmat Adediran, said that her son turned into arrested on Friday after the combat. She said, “When I were given to the faculty, the academics confident me that Bolu (her son) became now no longer a part of the combat and turned into recklessly picked up with the aid of using the police after they have been raiding scholars concerned withinside the combat.”

The mother and father mentioned that efforts to stable the discharge in their youngsters have been futile, Adediran said, “We have met with the faculty government, visited elders withinside the vicinity to intrude on the way to have them launched however all proved abortive. However, we had been summoned to a Parent-Teacher Association assembly on Friday, October 28, 2022 in which it turned into concluded that the harm to the faculty belongings turned into to the music of N2m. It changed into agreed through the dad and mom of the affected and mother and father of students who have been now no longer affected that each student can pay N700 each.’’

She defined that once the assembly, they have been confident that their youngsters could be launched from custody, including that the state of affairs didn’t change.

She stated, “After the assembly, we were given to Ibafo Police Station and the DPO knowledgeable us that they have been now no longer freeing our youngsters and the main ought to be contacted. However, the most important turned into contacted and we have been directed once more to the DPO. It now seems as though we’re being played. Also, we have been confident that the important might meet us later on the police station however all turned into a facade. After 8 days, our underage youngsters are nevertheless in police custody.”

However, our correspondent who visited the faculty on Saturday found that a number of the college assets have been broken. Some of the broken objects had been being changed and the faculty present process renovation.

Reacting to the development, the primary of the faculty who gave his call best as Mr Sunmonu, denied that the students have been in detention. He requested our correspondent to touch the Ibafo Police Station for confirmation.

He stated, “You don’t want to invite me if the students are there; visit the Ibafo Police Station to discover if the scholars are there or now no longer. You don’t want to invite me that sort of question. The excellent factor for you is to attain out to the DPO of the police station and ask him what happened.”

On a 2d name, the essential admitted that a contribution of N2m to update the broken objects turned into agreed upon at a PTA assembly.

He stated, “I can’t deliver any solution due to the fact you aren’t a stakeholder. The stakeholders have been there on Friday whilst we had a assembly and the whole lot changed into determined there.”

Stakeholders’ reactions

Reacting to the issue, a human rights lawyer, Ugwumadu Malachy, referred to that the police movement changed into condemnable.

He stated, “If there’s an allegation of destruction of public assets; that quantities to a malicious destruction of public assets that is a bailable offence. If from closing week Friday until now, they have got apprehended schoolchildren and stored in detention with out a price referred towards them, that detention have turn out to be unlawful and violates the rights of the youngsters through cause of the times they were stored in custody with out a fee at the order of the courtroom docket to remand them.”

“The rights to liberty of each Nigerian are assured beneathneath Section 34 & 35 of the Nigerian charter. You can not below the guise that you’re investigating an offence allegedly devoted with the aid of using any citizen and preserve them past forty eight hours. At most, we discover it absolutely unacceptable with out the orders of the courtroom docket.’’

He mentioned that the dad and mom of the schoolchildren ought to record a criminal grievance in opposition to the movements of the faculty and the police.

He added, “The charter said that residents of this u . s . a . can not have their rights trampled upon with out a redress. The mother and father can offer criminal illustration to their youngsters after which technique the police station for the unconditional launch in their children. If they have got a case in opposition to them, they ought to fee them to courtroom docket and withinside the absence of that, they have to be launched. The mother and father ought to offer criminal illustration for the enforcement in their essential human rights to liberty and to movement. However, if the police are satisfied that they’ve devoted wanton destruction, they ought to fee them to courtroom docket, and both way, they need to seek advice from the regulation and chorus from taking legal guidelines into their personal hands.”

Malachy additionally stated that civil societies should combat the detention of the schoolchildren on behalf in their mother and father as it changed into unlawful.

Another lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, mentioned that the extend detention of the schoolchildren changed into unlawful and unconstitutional.

He stated, “If the scholars have devoted any offence, there’s a method below the regulation in resolving that, specifically due to the fact they may be students. They aren’t intended to be detained past 24 hours. If the police are announcing they have got devoted an offence, they need to be taken to courtroom docket.”

Effiong mentioned that beneathneath the Child Rights Law and the Children and Young Persons Act, kids have been given unique remedy below the regulation.

He stated, “I don’t recognize the idea of the police preserving them however regardless of the excuse turned into, it’s far condemnable. While the destruction of the faculty assets need to now no longer be condoned, the students concerned must be sanctioned through the faculty after a radical research and honest hearing.

“It is incorrect for the police to detain them and that they have to be launched immediately. I predicted that the police will invite their dad and mom to take them on administrative bail. There isn’t  any justification for maintaining youngsters in custody for 10 days, not anything justifies that. The faculty government need to see to the instantaneously launch of the schoolchildren.”

Effiong cited that if there has been a felony technique the faculty desired to pursue, the problem need to be taken to courtroom docket.

Police react

Reacting to the development, the Divisional Police Officer, Ibafo Police Station, Alabi Olusoji said that he might now no longer deliver any records at the telecellsmartphone over the problem.

He said, “Some of those mother and father aren’t severe and that they don’t recognize what they’re announcing. Come to my workplace on Monday and I’ll offer you with good enough facts. However, in case you insisted that it turned into urgent, name the kingdom PPRO for confirmation.

“I don’t even recognize you, you’ve got got in no way referred to as me earlier than and you’re calling me approximately students who destroyed college assets, destroyed main’s workplace, stole cash as well. If you need something, come to my workplace on Monday. You can’t be asking me this form of data over the telecellsmartphone.”

Contacted, country police spokesperson, Abimbola Oyeyemi, mentioned that he became now no longer privy to the detention of the students. He promised to discover and get lower back to our correspondent.