Watch for the Signs

I wondered if there would ever be a suitable time to write about Sylvester Oromoni. Still, I felt as though I, like many other individuals who went through the Nigerian secondary school system, owe the public our stories to help them be watchful for signs that show that your child is truly unhappy or red flags in general.

I attended one of those catholic schools, where they expect you to be prim, proper and submissive to their every word. They expect you to be the perfect girl, passive and obedient, and if you’re not that, they’ll bend you to their rules, even if it means breaking you. They say they want to groom children that are bold and confident, but they do not create an atmosphere for them to thrive. I knew a particular girl; she was so sad and hell-bent on leaving the school but held on till the end of jss3 before transferring. In the end, I guess her parents thought she was better off finishing there, and that took her off the edge. She became depressed and even started cutting herself; this shows the extent of emotional and mental trauma she had been going through. I was going through things, too, but I had never seen someone so unhappy in my life. On some days, it was like she was there but not present. Others know this story, so I will not be mentioning any names. When our principal found out, instead of recommending a therapist or something like that, she called her out in front of our whole set and said she was trying to practice black magic or witchcraft. I don’t know how she survived the remaining three years of high school, but I’m sure it must have been hard.

I’m trying to say that, yes, most times, students are bullies. They are the real problem, but what of those times the school authorities (teachers, principals, non-teaching staff) become the problem too. The truth is that there are limits to what parents can do because they cannot be with their children 24/7, but I think the least they can do is watch out for the signs.