KENYA – Three students who attempted suicide yesterday after being suspended from school for possession of mobile phones, an act contrary to their school rules are recuperating at Nyamira County Hospital.
The girls attempted to kill themselves by ingesting hydrochloric acid but were rescued by boda boda riders who were attracted by their wailing at an abandoned alley at Nyabite market in Nyamira town.
Two of the girls had written suicide notes about frustrations they had encountered in the school.
The girls said they were required to clear fees arrears for the year and pay the school’s electricity bills before they could be allowed back to the school. The girls said their parents were struggling to educate them and they did not want to burden them with the school demands.
The question of allowing secondary school students to use mobile phones in school has generated a lot of debate and will continue to do so for some time.
There are strong opinions on each side of the debate with plausible arguments. According to Kinju-Kieme (2015) many public schools continued to resist allowing mobile phones in the classroom but the acceptance of these devices has been growing.
A study established by Richard Merichard Twebaze in MIER Journal of Educational Studies, Trends & Practices May 2015, Vol. 5, despite the official ban on use of mobile phones by students in a rural district of Bushenyi Uganda, 34% of the students said they were aware that some students own and use mobile phones in school.
It was further established that 40% of teachers said they were aware that some students owned and used phones in school while 20% of them supported the use of phones by the students. Meanwhile, 40% of the parents supported the use of mobile phones by students in school.
It was noted that the battle against the use of mobile phones by students in secondary schools might soon be lost due to the increased availability and benefits associated with their use.
For the case in Kenya, hospital’s medical superintendent Cyrus Ayunga said two of the students had taken a large amount of the acid. The girls said they opted for suicide because their suspension was unfair since they were sitting pre-mock exams when they were sent home.
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Photo [thestar.co.ke] – Nyamira County Hospital where the three suspended school girls were admitted after attempting suicide by drinking hydrochloric.
