Dowen College Bullying: Stories Not Adding Up

By: Kunle Duro, Lagos

As the narratives surrounding the alleged bullying of Sylvester Oromoni jr, a situation that allegedly led to his death continues to confound the nation, the police in Lagos may have called for a second look at the story as narrated by his father.

The police are said to be interested in what happened from the moment the 12-year-old was taken from the school by his parents to Warri and how he died later. 

The police are now questioning what drugs were prescribed on the sick child by the Doctor in Warri and what tests were carried out from Tuesday when the boy was handed over to his guardian till he died seven days later.

According to a police source, the police are currently looking at the story of the five boys who are now at juvenile remand in Lagos since last week.

According to him, the stories of the five boys seems to tally with that of the school’s position, a situation which is making the police take a second look at the validity of the narratives of Sylvester Oromoni’s father. 

“The young man was said to have left the school’s premises on Wednesday on his own without support but with a slight limp and taken to Warri by his father on Friday. We are awaiting the report of the doctor that treated Warri and the hospital he was taken to before he died on Tuesday, nine days after he sustained injuries.”

He said that the police may have detained the five children who allegedly bullied young Sylvester due to public pressure and interest in the story. “But the detained children in custody, the oldest of whom is 16 years, will surely have an everlasting implication on the lives of the boys if eventually they are found not guilty.”

It would be recalled that Dowen issued a statement stating the position of the school.

According to the statement issued by the Principal, “on 21st day of November 2021, one of the Hostel Parents reported to management that Sylvester was injured while playing football. The resident registered nurse immediately administered first aid on him and after he expressed relief, was released to return to his hostel room.

Sylvester was in class on Monday 22nd day of November 2021, but during school hours one of his friends accompanied him to the Sick Bay where he complained of some pain in his hip. The doctor examined him and prescribed Ibrofen for the pain, while the nurse massaged his leg, after which Sylvester said he felt a bit better.

“In accordance with school policy, the resident doctor called Mrs Oromoni reporting the incident and requesting that she come for him so that he could get further medical attention. The mother however said she was not in Lagos, spoke with Sylvester and prayed with him on the phone and promised to send the guardian to pick him up immediately for further medical attention.

“When the guardian failed to show up, the next day on the 23rd of November 2021, the doctor called the mother again and this time, she assured that his guardian would pick him from school. Sylvester’s guardian showed up and took him for an X-ray after which the guardian informed the school management that the results of the investigation revealed that no part of his body was broken or injured. 

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“The resident doctor also called the mother later in the week to check up on Sylvester’s progress but she informed the doctor that Sylvester was sleeping at the time.  

The Principal also spoke with Mrs Oromoni on the phone to enquire about his progress and she reported that he was having a massage and gave the phone to Sylvester to speak with the Principal.

“As a result, it came as no small shock to us to read wild social media tales that Sylvester was beaten by some students and that he specifically mentioned some names. We immediately commenced investigations and invited the students mentioned for an interview. Sylvester’s guardian was also present during some of the investigations. It was revealed that nothing of such happened.  

The whole incident was strange and unbelievable because the school has effective anti-bullying policies and consequences are well spelt out to all the students. The preliminary investigation showed that there was no fighting, bullying or any form of attack on the boy. 

“There were no reports by Sylvester himself, his sister who is also a student or any other students, prefects, house parents, medical staff or any of the management staff about any fighting or bullying incident. 

“The school has two regular nurses and a qualified medical doctor that promptly attends to students’ medical needs.

“The resident doctor followed the laid down procedure by inviting Mrs Oromoni to take Sylvester home for further treatment after initial treatment by the school’s medical staff.”

The school has a very cordial relationship with the Oromoni family as Sylvester is the fifth child of the family Dowen College has the privilege to train, including his elder sister who is currently a student at the school.

Furthermore, we state categorically Dowen College is built on core values of godliness and excellence and will not tolerate any acts of cultism, which is why there is nothing like that and there have never been such deviant activities going on, as this is a faith-based school and effective policies are in place to prevent such occurrence. 

We are deeply saddened by the death of Sylvester who was a dearly beloved student of the school. We wish to extend our deepest sympathy and heartfelt condolences to the Oromoni family, relatives, friends, and classmates at this very difficult time. 

Dowen College Bullying: Stories Not Adding Up