A 15-year-old secondary school student, Ebube Offo, has killed himself after drinking a substance confirmed to be sniper insecticide. Ebube, who hailed from Ezeagu local government area of Enugu state, was said to have taken his own life after the management of his new school, Malex International School, located at No 2A, Niger Close Uwani Enugu, expelled him over his alleged bad record from his former school,.
He was said to have been previously expelled during the second term of the ongoing 2024 academic session by his former school, Evangel Secondary School, Achara Layout Enugu, owned by the Assemblies of God Church Nigeria.
It was gathered on Sunday that after his expulsion, his parents, Mr and Mrs. Cosmos Offo, enrolled him into Malex School.
It was further gathered that when the principal of Evangel school heard about his enrollment, he rushed to the new school to inform them that the boy was a bad influence, a development that led to Ebube being expelled without any opportunity to observe him.
The deceased elder brother, an undergraduate, Mr. Onyedika Offo, who confirmed the development, said the bereaved family is yet to recover from the shock of Ebube’s death which occurred on Wednesday.
“I was in school when I got the information last Wednesday that Ebube, my younger brother, drank a substance suspected to be snipper, after which he was confirmed dead.
“He was depressed because of the suspension his school Malex International School gave him.
“The suspension was because the principal of his former school, Evangel Secondary School, went to tell the principal of Malex all manner of lies and unprintable things against him.
“But instead of taking some time to monitor and watch if what the Evangel principal told them about my late brother were true, the management suspended him from the school, leading to him suffering depression”, Ofo mourned.
He said before his brother’s death, the family members, particularly their mother, a petty trader, had observed that the deceased was exhibiting some strange attitudes, adding that he was always moody and unhappy.
“Whenever you ask him what the problem was, he would tell you nothing, that all was well with him. We, his brothers and sisters kept asking him if there was any issue, but he never told us that anything was bothering him, until that Wednesday.”
Efforts to reach the management of both schools failed as none of them was available during the weekend.
Also, efforts to speak with the Enugu State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Daniel Ndukwe did not respond to an enquiry on the development as he kept mute after reading the WhatsApp text sent to him.
Source: The Nation