I requested my daughter should be flogged — Father of Arabic school student

The father of the female Arabic student brutally flogged by colleagues in a viral video has said he requested that his daughter be punished by the institution.

The father Yunus Olanrewaju in an interview with BBC Pidgin said his son in Lagos sent him a video of the girl among boys drinking alcohol inside a hotel.

“It was my son in Lagos that sent the video of my daughter among boys that were drinking alcoholic drinks inside hotel and the incident really made me sad,.

“I informed the school about the incident and I personally requested that they should give her the appropriate punishment. I also insisted that I must be present when they are carrying out the punishment.”

Olarenwaju said he had known the Islamic school for over 20 years, adding that eight of his children had graduated from the Arabic institution.

Meanwhile, the Kwara state government reacting to the viral video said “The government’s team carefully listened to the authorities of the Arabic school, the father of the sole girl in the video, and four other students involved in the unsavoury development.

“Regardless of the explanations of the authorities on the development, the self-confessed consent of the parents and regret of the affected students, the government seriously frowns at the harsh beating seen in the footage.

“Consequently, the government has directed the setting up of an investigative committee, comprising Muslim scholars, leaders and government officials, to look into the issue while the head of the Arabic school, who admitted to directing the punishment, has been asked to step aside pending the conclusion of the investigation.

“The government has also taken the affected students to a public hospital for proper medical examination and treatment. This is to ensure that none of them suffers any physical or psychological damage.”