The Lagos State Government has announced the reopening of Chrisland School, which was closed abruptly a week ago due to allegations of sexual misconduct by five of the school’s students while on an international vacation.
The state administration announced the closure of all of the school’s branches on Monday.
According to the report, the development was necessary to protect the safety of students and employees, as well as a “unhindered investigation of the occurrence.”
However, the state government, in a statement signed by the commissioner of education, Folasade Adefisayo, urged the schools to reopen on Monday, ahead of the start of the third term in the ongoing 2021/2022 academic year.
All Chrisland Schools, which were closed due to suspected wrongdoing by some pupils in Dubai, will resume on Monday, April 25th, 2022, according to the Lagos State Ministry of Education.
“The instruction comes after an assessment of the incident’s ongoing administrative investigation. Furthermore, it is to ensure that students have access to learning when the new term begins on Monday, April 25th, 2022.”
New protocols are being developed.
Meanwhile, the government said the education ministry and other state agencies would collaborate with the schools parent teachers’ association (PTA) to provide psychosocial support for the affected students, without specifying the status of the investigation reportedly launched into the alleged scandal.
Background
On Monday, a video of suspected sexual misconduct by five students at the school went viral on social media, drawing widespread condemnation from the public.
The alleged scandal occurred in March, while Chrisland School was in Dubai for the World School Games, a four-day yearly competition that brings together schools from all over the world.
The news came less than four years after Adegboyega Adenekan, a teacher at the school, was found guilty and sentenced to 60 years in prison for raping a two-year-old female child.
While announcing the school’s closure, the authorities also issued a warning against anyone disseminating the sex footage via any method. It vowed to take legal action against anyone found guilty of breaking the law.
All allegations are being investigated by relevant ministries, departments, and agencies, including the ministry of education, the office of education quality assurance, the ministry of youth and social development, the ministry of justice, and the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency, while criminal allegations have been escalated to the Commissioner of Police,” the statement read in part.
Earlier this week, the National Association of Private School Owners (NAPPS) urged the government to reconsider its stance on the school’s extended closure.
It claimed that the decision will have a severe impact on other students at the school, particularly those taking external exams.
Yomi Otubela, the association’s national president, who signed the statement, denounced the behavior and committed to work with the government and all other interested parties to avoid similar incidents from occurring in any of the association’s member schools or elsewhere.
