The tranquil Sunday evening of September 15, 2024, was abruptly shattered for Ms Jacinta Ndiege when she received a distressing call from Friends School Kamusinga.
Mr. Wekesa, identifying himself as her son John Mark’s class teacher, informed her that the Form Two student had been involved in a severe accident, falling into a septic tank on school grounds. Initially, Mr. Wekesa attempted to allay her fears, stating that John had been stabilized. However, as Ms Ndiege sought more information, the narrative took a troubling turn, with the teacher suggesting that John had intentionally jumped into the tank. Driven by maternal concern, Ms Ndiege hastily closed her business in Kisumu County and embarked on an urgent journey to Bungoma County.
Her attempts to gather more details about her son’s condition and whereabouts were met with confusion and reluctance from the hospital staff upon her arrival at Bungoma Life Care Hospital. The situation rapidly deteriorated as Ms. Ndiege was advised to report the matter to the police, a suggestion that hinted at a grim reality she was not yet prepared to accept. At the Kimilili Police Station, Ms Ndiege’s emotional turmoil intensified. The Directorate of Criminal Investigation officer assigned to the case proposed that preliminary findings pointed towards suicide, a conclusion she vehemently rejected.
Determined to uncover the truth, she insisted on visiting Friends School Kamusinga, where she was met by the deputy head teacher who echoed the police’s narrative. However, accounts from student witnesses painted a different picture of the events leading to John Mark’s tragic incident. They described a chaotic scene where students, including John, were queuing to use the toilets when a teacher abruptly dispersed them. This conflicting information only deepened Ms Ndiege’s anguish and fueled her determination to understand the full circumstances of her son’s death. The tragedy was further compounded by discrepancies in documentation at the mortuary, as noted by John’s uncle, Mr Evans Ndiega.
These inconsistencies, coupled with the varying accounts from teachers and students, cast doubt on the school’s official narrative and raises questions about their accountability in the incident. In a heart-wrenching development, postmortem results reveals that John Mark’s death was caused by asphyxiation due to toxic gas exposure. This finding adds another layer of complexity to the case, prompting further scrutiny of the safety conditions at the school, particularly regarding the septic tank involved in the incident.
