Management of Dowen College in Lagos State, Southwest Nigeria, has announced the retirement of several of its principal officers including Olumide Phillips, the school’s founder, following the controversies that surrounded the death of its student, Sylvester Oromoni.
Gatekeepers News reports that 12-year-old Oromoni was allegedly beaten by some senior students who tried to initiate him into a cult group in the school, and he eventually died on November 30, 2021, after efforts to save his life failed.
On Thursday, Dowen College in a statement signed by Tomi Borishade on behalf of the board, said Philips and other founding members of the school’s board of governors have decided to quit their roles.
The decision is part of efforts by the school to review its current policies in the wake of Oromoni’s death in order to forestall similar experiences in the future.
It added that such policy review was to “reassure the public of our best intentions and how the interest of all parties can best be served in sustaining and growing the good and privileged legacy of the school.”
The school also vowed to sack anyone found responsible for “administrative lapses in duties” during its review process.
“As we review our processes, the school authority will not hesitate to relieve anyone responsible for administrative lapses in the duties of their positions,” it read.
“We are keen on ensuring that this type of situation never arises again. More significantly, the founding members of the Board of Governors including the Founder and Chairman of the Board, Dr Olumide Phillips who have worked tirelessly over the years to develop outstanding children both in and out of the school, have chosen to retire and pass the baton of change to a new generation of seasoned professionals who will run with the vision, leadership passion, commitment and values they have worked rigorously to establish.”
The school said its board of governors had agreed to engage external consultants to work with the school’s management “over the next few months to ensure that high standards and best practices are upheld and implemented where they are needed.”
Gatekeepers News had earlier reported that the first autopsy released to the public had revealed that Oromoni died of “acute lung injury due to chemical intoxication in a background of blunt force trauma.”
