THE STORY OF THE LITTLE GIRL THAT WAS KILLED BY HER CARELESS SCHOOL BUS DRIVER .......
On Friday, January 27, 2012, Tola and Atinuke Omotola lost their daughter to an alleged mistake that could have been avoided. The family says dealing with the loss has been very challenging and urges the Lagos State Government to ensure that those responsible for their child’s death are brought to book, MOTUNRAYO ABODERIN writes
The worst news any mother can receive is that her child is dead. Thinking about the fact that the little girl she nurtured from the womb is gone is indeed painful.
For Dr. Atinuke Omotola, a young mother, losing her two years and five months old daughter, Simisolaoluwa, to an alleged mistake that could have been avoided, hurts more.
On January 27, after school, Atinuke’s two children were transported from Goldenbunch School, Yaba, Lagos, by the school bus. When the bus arrived at their home, her house help was outside waiting to receive them. After the first son alighted from the bus, Simisolaoluwa (otherwise called Simi) also did. But the house help did not know that Simi’s uniform was stuck in the door of the school bus.
In a split second, the bus driver drove off, dragging Simi along. Neighbors said the tyres of the bus climbed on Simi’s head,.
Narrating the ordeal to our correspondent who visited their home in Yaba last Monday, Atinuke said, “Life has been quite hard. The incident happened on January 27 but it feels like yesterday. That Friday, we all woke quite early. I got my two kids ready for school, made their breakfast and lunch. I told my daughter that she looked like a princess, and that I would always love her. I never knew it would be the last time I would set my eyes on her alive.
“When we got to their school, Goldenbunch School at Omoyele Street, Yaba, I carried her down from the car, gave her a tight hug and got into my car. For like a minute, I just sat in my car, it’s like I did not want to let her go,” she said.
Omotola said at about 1.23pm while in the office, she got a call from a neighbor telling her that her daughter was dead.
“My phone rang and a woman who identified herself as our neighbour said that my daughter had been involved in an accident and that she was dead. Immediately, I cut the phone. I thought it was someone playing pranks. I called the number and she picked up. I asked if she was serious and she said yes.
“The first few seconds after the call was as if I wanted to faint. I kept telling myself no, not my little girl. I called my husband and told him the news. I did not even wait to hear his reply. I rushed out of the office and drove to the hospital where they said she was taken to by another neighbor. On getting there, they said she had been referred to the Lagos University Teaching Hospital. I then drove down to L.U.T.H,” she said.
Atinuke said when she got to the ward where her daughter was, she was already dead.
She said, “I could not believe my ears. I cried my eyes out. Being a doctor, that desire to examine my late daughter to know the actual cause of her death was so strong. When I checked her body and her arms, I saw scratches. That means she was dragged by the bus.”
Atinuke said that she kept asking, ‘Who was the nanny in the bus? Who was with my child? At this point, I was informed that there was an 18 year-old nanny in the bus.
“When I met the girl and questioned her, she said she was employed on the Monday before the accident happened, and that she was not a nanny but an assistant teacher. I asked her why she did not get down to ensure that my children got down from the bus safely which was to be the job of any adult in a bus with 10 children; but she had no response. I noticed that the clothes she wore was clean, that means after my child was removed from under the bus, she did not even bother to carry her.”
She added that during the ordeal, she did not get any phone call from the proprietor of the school. “I did not hear from the proprietor of the school at all. When my husband and I returned from the hospital, members of staff of the school came to shed crocodile tears in my house.”
Atinuke said she was angry at the fact that the proprietor might have wanted to save money and so opted to get an assistant teacher who would also act as a nanny.
“At least, I pay N50,000 as transportation fee on each of my children per term. That should be enough to employ an experienced nanny to take care of pupils,” she lamented.
The father, Mr. Tola Omotola, said that dealing with his daughter’s death has been challenging. “Sometimes when I’m sitting in the parlour, I imagine her running out of the room screaming dad.
“Last Friday, while driving to Redemption Camp, my son asked me where we were going, I said Redemption Camp, then he asked if we were going to see Jesus, I said yes, then he screamed and said that means we would see Simi. I went cold. Because we had told him earlier that Simi went to be with Jesus.”
Omotola, a banker, said his daughter died as a result of negligence and carelessness, and urged the Lagos State government to address the issue. “The school needs to take responsibility for its action. Simi’s death should be taken as a serious issue.”
Asked if he would press charges against the school bus driver, Omotola said, “The school has already handed the driver over to the police. But I’m displeased with the police. On Saturday, the police kept calling our phones, asking us to write a letter for the release of the driver. They said that the driver was not feeling strong health wise, and that his wife had just put to bed.
“We told them that their behavior was in-human, and that they did not even consider that we had just lost a child and needed a little privacy. We weren’t the ones who put the driver in detention, why should they be disturbing us?”
The Director-General, Lagos State Safety Commission, Mrs. Odebunmi Dominga, said, “I sympathize with the family who lost their toddler to the alleged negligence of the school bus driver that is supposed to take care of the children under the management of the school, I assure them of the position of the Lagos State Government with the Safety Commission, harnessing and synergising with all the safety structures that have already been in government. We assure them that the issue of safety will be moved to the forefront to become a lifestyle in Lagos State.
“From now onwards, every school in the state, including day care or nursery that will be having children in their custody, must think about the safety of the children thoroughly, and make sure that the management system which they use to operate in the area of safety complies with government’s standard. They should assess the risk these children can be exposed to, assess the dangers that are likely to occur, and put certain structures in place to avoid tragedy,” she said.
In response to question on action that would be taken against Goldenbunch School, the DG said, “For the school, the Lagos State Government together with its Legal Department will deliberate on the next action to take, but government will not take the issue lightly with the school, and this issue will not be brushed aside.”
The Proprietor, Goldenbunch School, Mrs. Modupe Ogundinmu, who was at the Lagos State Safety Commission to file an incidence report, said she was really sober about the tragedy.
Meanwhile, the Principal Consultant, School-run Consult, Mrs. Bisi Akin-Alabi, said she had personally made several efforts to ensure that safety measures were put in place in schools. She advised parents to take the safety of their children as a serious concern.
“Schools should have the right insurance. That is, there should be an insurance scheme attached to every child. If the school involved had every child insured, then we would be speaking to the insurance company now.’’
Akin-Alabi enjoined schools to be more mindful of their policy and recruitment policy, adding that an 18-year-old for instance should not be employed as a nanny.
“No one can protect your child more than you can. The school has a role to play, but you as a parent has more serious roles to play. Last year, my son almost lost his left eye when one of his friends threw a dagger at him,” she said
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