A Kano-based mother, Hauwau Ahmad Aminu has narrated how school bullying and verbal abuse eventually led to the death of her daughter.
Hauwau spoke to BBC Hausa version on Wednesday in commemoration of International Day Against Violence and Bullying at School as earmarked by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO.
UNESCO has declared the first Thursday of every November to recognize school-related violence in all its forms including infringement of children and adolescents’ rights to education and their health and well-being.
While recounting her daughter’s experience, Hauwau said Zainab had suffered years of mental health issues without them knowing the root cause of it. She added that losing her daughter pushed her to know the implications of school bullying which had compelled her to raise awareness against the act.
Hauwau said her daughter, Zainab was in JSS 3 when she was crowned head girl in her school. This development, however, spiked jealousy in some of her classmates.
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The classmates, who conspired against Hauwau’s daughter bullied her and threatened to kill her at some point.
She narrated that the episodes accumulated to instill fear in her which resulted in severe anxiety and mental depression.
“For seven years, we consulted doctors at the hospital. But wherever we went, we were told that the severity of her ailment had badly affected her brain and that was how she eventually died.” she narrated.
She added that it was too late before they realized the root cause of Zainab’s ailment or they would have involved the school authorities or changed her school.
“She spent 2 years hiding it from us. The day we found out, she fainted 5 times,”
“As her mother, I was also affected by Zainab’s condition. The mere thought of it used to give me a severe headache. I can’t express how painful it was to watch her suffer and die in that condition,” she added.
“School bullying is not just about physical assault or rape. It also includes verbal abuse and name-calling,” she said.
“Verbal abuse affects children’s mental health and it takes a toll on their general endeavor. It affects their academic performance and self-esteem,” she added.
According to her, sometimes it leads to children plunging into depression and anxiety which greatly affects their mental health. She added that verbal abuse has become common in most schools these days.
“Anyone who has passed through school knows what I am talking about. However, it is not given much attention because it wasn’t prevalent in the past. Times have changed. This is greatly affecting the academic performance of children today.
“Even the teachers are guilty of this in some cases. For instance, when a teacher makes fun of a child, his peers pick up those words and jest him which in turn, may take a toll on him,” she added.
She called on teachers to be conscious of their words as well as bullying and its implications on students.
Hauwau further called on parents to constantly pay attention to their children’s needs and patterns of behaviour so as to discern when something is amiss.
