Monrovia – A parent who asked not to be named in order to secure her son’s identity has expressed regret over the slow pace at which Soltiamon Christian School is investigating a recent incident when her son consuming a strange substance believe to be drugs.
Report by Bettie K. Johnson-Mbayo, [email protected]
She said it is over two weeks since her son took in the substance. Doctors confirmed to her that her son had taken in a “strange substance”.
The school has not said anything to notify parents about what her child took in, she said.
The parent said her son went to school and felt ill, was rushed to the hospital and was diagnosed by a doctor who said he had taken in a strange substance.
“The school told me to take him to the hospital and I did while there I asked him if he took in anything because the doctor told me he took in strange things. He said one of his colleagues give him something and it was in a paper when he took it he slept for long,” the concern parent said.
“My son said the paper was given to him by one of the students and several students usually buy it from the seller who is also a student.
“There is a guy in our class who always bring it on campus and he can give it to other students on campus and they fool me and I realize that it was something else because when I took it, it treated me bad.”
The parent and son decided to report the incident so they both planned according to the parent and the student was reported to the disciplinary head.
Prior to their planning, at a program, the substance was sole there and the same students were buying it, according to her son.
“While on the field, one of the students told him that it was opium .I asked him, are you sure it is a student and he said yes, he even called the student’s name and he told me to give him money to buy it so that it can serve as FOC, but I refused.
“So, I told the disciplinary chair to give him money when he (my son) sees the substance dealer, so that’s how they were exposed.”
She said since the incident, the school authority has not said anything about initiating an investigation along with the Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency.
“One thing I know that the school said to us that too many young children were involved and they will have a continuous meeting with parents. I remembered I was called once but I did not attend because I was in school.”
“I am always asking my son if the school has requested for us, and all he says; ‘no mama’, so I think they should inform parents on their next move as an institution, they can’t just allow our kids to take in strange substance and we don’t know as parents.”
Solomon Joah, the head of the Soltiamon school system, said the indetity of the substance has not yet been established. He said the school doesn’t know if the substance was drugs, adding that the school is working with the drugs agency to establish that.
He said the “for the years the school has been established for it stands for principle and has stronger policies on drugs abuse.”
FPA has been investigating the incident for more than a week and has been reliably informed that the school administration has reportedly expelled some students involved.
Meanwhile, Michael Geeplay the Communication Director at Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency, told FPA that the agency has no received any complaint as claimed by the school administration.
“You are the first person telling me, our record doesn’t show anything that Soltiamon filed a complaint requesting an investigation.”