Funke Olaode
Mr. Michael Adeniran father of the late 12 year old student of Christland School, Opebi, Lagos, Omodesola Whitney Adeniran, who died on February 9th, 2023 , yesterday, said his daughter had died before she was taken to the hospital by the school management.
The matter came up yesterday at the Ikeja High Court, when the school’s lead counsel, Bolaji Ayorinde, SAN, cross-examined the plaintiff and witness, Mr. Adeniran.
Whitney’s father had accused the school management of negligence that led to the untimely death of his daughter who left home that day hale and hearty.
Whitney, a JSS 2 of the elite school was allegedly electrocuted during the school’s inter-house sports held at Agege Stadium on February 9th, 2023.
While being cross-examined by Ayorinde, SAN, Adeniran told a Lagos State High Court in Ikeja that his daughter was allegedly dead at the stadium before she was taken to the hospital.
However, there was a mild drama in the court between the defendant and plaintiff under exhibit PW1A, which was issued where the name of the deceased was wrongly written. The issue was resolved and the matter continued
Re-affirming his earlier claim about his daughter’s death, Adeniran told the court that he was informed by the school nurse that his daughter was already dead before she was taken to the hospital.
He said the nurse told him the deceased eyes had dilated but she could not confirm her death because she was not a doctor.
Speaking further, Ayorinde, SAN inquired about the medical condition of the deceased from his father whether she had any severe illness.
But Adeniran said his daughter was hale and hearty and didn’t have any ‘health issue’ that needed urgent attention.
The Lagos State Government had on March 31, 2023, arraigned Chrisland School Limited, Opebi, and its principal, vice principal, and two others over the death of one of the school’s students, Whitney Adeniran.
They were arraigned alongside the school before Justice Oyindamola Ogala.
The defendants were Ademoye Adewale, (Cotton candy vendor), Kuku Fatai, Belinda Amao (Principal), and Victoria Nwatu.
The defendants were standing trial on two counts bordering on involuntary manslaughter as well as reckless and negligent acts preferred against them by the state.
At the resumed hearing of the trial, yesterday, Adeniran who is the first prosecution witness narrated this to the court during cross-examination by the school’s counsel Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN).
When asked if Whitney was absent from school on February 2, 2023, due to illness, Adeniran replied,” Yes, she was absent from school, but she was not ill.”
The witness said on January 20, 2023, the school had called his wife (the deceased’s mother), to inform her that Whitney was ill.
He said his daughter was then taken to Inland Specialist Hospital at Ikeja and the doctor prescribed some drugs for her to be taken and the dosage but that he didn’t know the name of the drugs.
When asked if he knew the name of the drugs, he explained that he got to know the name of the drugs from the doctor’s report obtained from the hospital issued on February 16, 2023.
Adeniran mentioned the names of the drugs as nitrazepam 5mg and amitriptyline, 12.5mg which he read from an exhibit before the court.
Asked if he was informed by the Agege Central Hospital and Diagnostic Limited that the deceased died of cardiac arrest, the witness replied that he was informed that she died of cardiac arrest.
He told the court that he could not remember anybody informing him that oxygen was administered to her at the hospital.
The witness also told the court that he could not remember if the school nurse mentioned anything about applying cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the deceased.
However, the case was adjourned till January 24, for continuation of trial.
