By Eric Elezuo

Thursday, February 9, 2023, was supposed to be the happiest day in the life of both staff and students of Chrisland School, Opebi, Ikeja, as all looked forward to the school’s Inter-house sports competition.

For the Adendirans, their 12 years old precious daughter, Whitney, was going to be a beauty to watch, and so the mother made plans to attend the event in person at the Agege Stadium.

But what was supposed to be a happy moment for the staff and students of Chrisland School, the Adedirans, and a host of other parents turned into a nightmare. Whitney supposed slumped while the events were on. She was rushed to the clinic where she was pronounced dead.

Both the parents and teachers of the school are still at a loss as to what transpired and may have led to the sudden death of the student.

Recall that the death of the student is the second time in recent times the school will come under the radar for the wrong reasons. Earlier in 2022, students of the institution were captured on video engaging in sex while on an excursion to Dubai.

A lot of people have commented on the matter raising concerns about what could have happened.

According to a staff of the institution, who preferred anonymity, the said student just slumped and died, and the whole matter surprised everyone.

“She didn’t participate in any competition, not even marching. We are still wondering what must have happened. Only God knows,” the source said.

Commenting on the tragic incident, the father of the child, Micheal Adeniran, said his daughter was not sick when the school bus picked her up for the event.

“To the biggest shock of my life by 1 pm in the afternoon, I got a call from my wife that she was informed that our daughter slumped at the inter-house sport and she was rushed to the clinic.

“My wife was at the venue even before the event started. She was never informed or called until they have conveyed our child out of the venue before they informed her. On arrival of my wife at the health center where they took my daughter. my daughter was lying dead with her lips black and her tongue black.

“My wife called me urgently, I left my office to the place and found my 12year old daughter lying dead on the ground. I asked questions about what happened to my daughter and the school authority could not get me any information as to what happened to my child in their care.

“I gave Chrisland school a healthy vibrant young girl what Chrisland returned to me is a dead child. My entire family is in deep sorrow but the school Authorities claimed they know nothing about my daughter’s death and all they know is that my daughter slumped and died.

“My question is what happened to my daughter at Agege stadium? As a father, I demand answers from Chrisland International High School. I am in deep pain and sorrow right now. If you are a father you will understand my pain. My daughter is highly loved by us. We cherished her existence and we can never allow an institution to gloss over the death of our daughter.

“Since we started asking this question. The school has been asking us to back down from the autopsy and I know they know their way into the system. I am calling on the pathology department of @lasuth to please be honest with their result. Lagos State government, Nigerian Government, please intervene,” the  bereaved father wrote in a social media post.

The girl’s mother also made a public post about the sad event.

According to the mother, she was in the inter-house sports event when she discovered her daughter was nowhere to be found during the school activities.

“During the match past, I looked, the first house matched, I didn’t see my child. The second house matched, but I didn’t see my child. The third house matched, but I didn’t see my child. I became worried”, she said.

Along the line, she had decided to search for her child around the stadium, then a student had revealed to her that Whitney fainted and was rushed to a clinic

She further stated that no teacher or staff called her to speak of her daughter’s state, and after meeting a staff, they said her daughter had been rushed to the hospital.

Upon her arrival at the hospital, she met her daughter’s corpse on the bed, she said, “I went in there and saw my daughter’s corpse. I saw my daughter on her deathbed. She was already dead when I saw her. She was drenched and soaked to her skin. Water was dripping out. I screamed, I called on God. I shouted. I called on God”

Mrs. Adeniran further stated that the school claimed that her daughter suffered from a cardiac arrest which led to her death.

“How can a 12-year-old have a cardiac arrest? No pre-existing medical or heart condition. Even if they claim it was cardiac arrest, how can one single arrest kill a healthy teenager?”

In light of the grievous event, the school management also released a press statement on Sunday, to shed light on what had transpired.

The statement read; “The management and staff of Chrisland Schools Limited, with a deep sense of loss, announce the death of our precious student, Whitney Adeniran; whose painful exit occurred on Thursday, February 9th, 2023.

“We are heartbroken and distressed. Whitney was one of our Day students who opted not to participate in the inter-house sports match past for reasons we were not very sure of.

“However, on discretion, we respected her decision to err on the side of caution, because, on January 20, 2023, it is in our records that she had complained about not-too-buoyant health and we immediately contacted her parents.

“Her father, Mr. Michael Adeniran, came to the school to take her home. We emphasized to her parents to take a critical look at her.

“Our immediate response was to take advantage of proximity to first-aid, by identifying the nearest medical facility to take her to, where the doctor on duty, administered oxygen and every aid possible on her.

“We immediately notified regulatory stakeholders and agencies to allow for a comprehensive evaluation and assessment of the developments.”

“In spite of the compelling imperatives to fill any information gaps in public space, we stopped short of making any media sensation out of this, because the deceased in question, was a minor and is deserving of our unqualified respect.”

“We also prioritized according to respect for the privacy of the family and were with them consistently, to mourn together. This is a painful loss for all of us,”

“As we continue to uphold the sobriety of this moment, we resist any urge to join issues on her treasured memory, in media trends.”

“As we await the outcome of an independent post-mortem process, we remain unwaveringly committed to supporting the family at this critical moment and pray fervently for the fortitude to bear her painful loss,”

Meanwhile, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, verified the happening the case was under investigation and necessary measures were being put in place.