Flood kills pupil in Edo

The Edo State Government has withdrawn licences of two schools following the death of a 12 year-old pupil, Master Nathan Paul Spencer, who was swept away by flood on his way to write Middle Basic Assessment Examination.

Commissioner for Education, Paddy Iyamu, who disclosed this during a condolences visit to the parents of the deceased, said the head of one of the schools was also arrested in connection with the incident.

He explained that two of the schools were shut down over the death, while the two others were closed down for allegedly collecting illegal fee from over 200 pupils.

“We’ve also withdrawn the licenses of the two Schools in connection with the death of the minor. Further action would be taken to effect consequence on the management” he said.

According to him, the pupil’s death occurred during a heavy downpour that caused severe flooding in the area.

He said investigation into the incident revealed that the management of the pupil’s school had registered him to write the examination at a different school without informing his parents.

“It was revealed that the Head of the school had taken the registration fee from Nathan’s parents in Ovia Local Government but negligently took the child to another school in Egor Local Government for the examination.

“Tragically, Nathan fell into a gutter and drowned during heavy rain,” he said.

The Commissioner, who expressed condolences to the victim’s family, assured that those responsible have been held accountable.