JUST IN: Police arraign seven students for beating teacher in Ogun

Seven students of Isanbi Comprehensive High School, Ilisan Remo, in Ikenne Local Government area of Ogun State, were on Friday arraigned before an Ogun State Magistrate Court, sitting in Sagamu, for allegedly beating a teacher of the school, Kolawole Sonuga who allegedly prevented one of them from cheating during examination.

Those charged to court were Adelaja Kazeem, Asimiyu Adedimeji, Somefun Timileyin, Awolaru Ayoka, Ogunbayo Taiwo, Mudashiru Fawaz and Audu Samson.

Vanguard reliably gathered that Sonuga was on Tuesday last week beaten by a gang of ten Senior Secondary School students for stopping one of them from cheating during an examination in the school.

It was further gathered that Sonuga, while invigilating the Unified Examination for the SS 1 Art Class students, caught one, Ashimi Adebanjo, cheating and seized his paper.

Dissatisfied with the teacher’s action, the students after school hours, waylaid the teacher, and beat him up at the school’s gate.

An eye witness who pleaded anonymity said, one of them, Kazeem Adelaja allegedly hit a stick on Sonuga’s head while others were beating him.

It was gathered that Police from the Remo Division later pounced on the students and arrested about ten of them.

The State Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools, Felix Agbesanwa frowned at the incident and insisted that the students must face the wrath of the law to serve as a deterrent.

He said “The incident is true and I have been briefed. Our stand is that any student who raises his hand against his teacher should face the wrath of the law.

“There’s no going back on that. No student must raise his hands against the teacher, whether Ogun Teach teachers or permanent teachers, a teacher is a teacher.

“They must be made to face the law to serve as a deterrent. I learnt they have been charged to court already.”

The state government has also condemned the act and vowed that it would not condone acts of indiscipline by learners across the state.

Reacting to the incident, the Chairman, Ogun State Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM), Evang Olalekan Ifede, who confirmed the incident, said “there was no two ways to it, those found on the wrong side of the law would definitely not go unpunished”.

It was learnt that the students were arraigned before a Sagamu Magistrate Court on Friday.

On his part, the Special Adviser to Ogun State Governor on Education, Science and Technology, Prof. Abayomi Arigbabu, said the State government would not condone any act of indiscipline from any students in either primary or secondary schools across the State.

Arigbabu stated that the judiciary and the police had been contacted to support the Ministry in War Against Indiscipline and Truancy in schools.

He noted that part of the efforts put in place was the signing of Undertaking Forms by learners, parents, and school heads to make learners and parents liable for any misconduct of the learners or parents alike, saying the aim was to have a safe learning environment free from the pandemonium of any sort.

“I’m using this opportunity to advise parents to talk to their children, they should warn them, because we won’t tolerate any indiscipline from any child. Any student that misbehaves in school will be dealt with appropriately,” he said.

In October 2021, no fewer than four cases of assault on teachers were recorded in different public schools in the Ogun state, forcing the government to introduce a compulsory undertaking signed by all the students and their parents to curb hooliganism.

When contacted, Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Omotola Odutola, confirmed the incident.

Odutola said Sonuga had made a formal report on the alleged assault at Remo Police Division.