PTA wants Queen's College Visitation Panel to probe molestation claim
(Nigeria) The Queen's College Parent/Teacher Association
says it is expecting a Visitation Panel set up by the Federal Ministry of
Education to investigate the molestation claim by a parent on March 30.
Mrs Beatrice Akhetuame, Chairperson of the association, who
addressed newsmen on Monday in Lagos, said that the panel had invited all
concerned stakeholders on the matter to appear before it on the set date.
The panel is on a fact finding mission over an alleged case
of molestation by the parent of a daughter at the institution.
The claim that a male teacher of the institution had
sexually harassed a JSS-2 student had gone virile on the social media, as well
as other conventional media, but had since been refuted by key stakeholders of
the institution.
She said, ``We as an association have received our own
invitation letter and so have all other concerned persons. The college
management too have received theirs, as well as the accused and the blogger.
``What we are now appealing for is for the woman who gave
her daughter's name as Chinenye Okoye to come forward and collect her own
letter of invitation,’’ she said.
Akhetuame noted that the presence of the supposed victim
would go a long way in ensuring speedy findings and recommendations on the
issue.
Akhetuame, however, expressed surprise that in the midst of
the allegation and confusion, the said mother of the girl who is claiming
assault on her daughter had yet to disclose her identity.
According to her, it will be to the interest of the college,
the management and all concerned persons over the issue to get everyone present
before the panel, so as to tackle the issue once and for all.
``I am the representative of parents of the college and
therefore, I have the sole responsibility of defending the interest of parents
and thye welfare of the girls also falls on me.
``I am a mother of five girls, two of them right here in
this college. It will not be possible for me to ever have notice of such
incidence and try to cover it up or do anything funny about it. I know what it
means to train the girl-child and I dare say at all times, my attention is
always focused on their activities or issues that concern them.
``It is, therefore, wrong for some persons who do not have
enough facts on the issue to go ahead and be casting aspersions on my person or
that of the college management, concerning an alleged cover up.
``We are happy the panel is visiting and I pray that the
truth behind the entire saga would be unraveled, but as far as we are
concerned, no such thing ever happened, even as we await the supposed mother of
the girl to come for her invitation letter and reveal her identity to us,’’ she
added.
Recently, a parent of a JSS-2 girl claimed that one of the
male teachers in the school had allegedly molested her daughter on a few
occasions, after the teacher had been around the hostel at night, while he was
drunk.
The parent claimed that this happened during the night prep,
but school authorities say that besides the Security men, no male staff lives
close to the hostel.
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