A school, Landmark School Mgbakwu in the Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State has been permanently shut down by the state government after a pupil was beaten to coma.
It was reported that the 30-year-old teacher Faith Nwonye, “brutalized” the eight-year-old pupil, including another pupil.
The commissioner for Education, Ngozi Chuma-Udeh who disclosed this to journalists in her office on Monday, stated that the school was not only closed based on the ugly incident but due to its illegal operation.
Chuma-Udeh disclosed further that she had summoned the school’s proprietor and Nwonye to explain the incident that led to the brutalisation of the primary two pupils.
“We received this unfortunate incident from an illegal school in Mgbakwu that a child was beaten to a coma over the weekend. On behalf of the State Government, we invited the proprietress of the illegal school as well as the teacher who purportedly beat the child,” she stated.
She added that the case has been handed over to the police for investigation, noting that anyone running an unapproved school in Anambra is a criminal.
“We’ve handed the matter to the police for further investigations, as we await Mr Governor’s directives. Meanwhile, the school is closed down indefinitely because it’s not supposed to exist in the first instance. Any parent who is enrolling his/her child in an illegal school is doing so at his/her own peril.
“To the proprietors of private schools, anyone running an unapproved school in Anambra is a criminal. It’s a criminal offence to run an illegal school in the state,” she said.
The commissioner stated that according to the medical doctor, the chance of survival of the pupil who is under admission in a hospital is slim.
“Whether the school is legal or not, it’s criminal to beat a child. According to the doctor, the chances of survival of the child is 20 per cent,” she lamented.
Chuma-Udeh further stated that if the teacher is found guilty after the investigation, she will be brought to book.