King’s College Diphtheria outbreak: Parents anxious, call for PTA meeting

Anxiety has gripped parents of students at Kings College, Lagos following the outbreak of Diphtheria in the school which has claimed the life of a 12-year-old student.

The situation has led to some parents asking their wards to stay at home for now.

This is also as some parents are calling for a meeting of the Parent Teacher Association, PTA, of the school and have been bombarding the PTA social media platforms for a meeting for them to be able to assess the situation.

This is just as the Lagos State government has started a mass vaccination of the students in the two campuses of the school on Victoria Island and Lagos Island.

One of the concerned parents, who gave her name simply as Nkechi, said the assurances being given by the leadership of the PTA might not be enough, as parents want an on-the-spot assessment of the situation done.

“Last December, a student also died and many people suspected that it was due to the same disease. The rot started long ago and the current management inherited it. But that is not to say it must continue. The annex on Victoria Island is for the Junior Secondary School classes, while the Senior Secondary School is on Lagos Island. 

“Without been a medical personnel one can say the incident was due to unsanitary condition of the classrooms and hostels. They are simply overcrowded. We gathered that 34 students showed the symptoms of the disease with 14 being serious cases. We hope the situation will be brought under control as soon as possible,” she stated

Nkechi, a former member of the executive of the PTA, suggested that stringent health measures be put in place in the school and that more facilties be provided to prevent overcrowding in the classrooms and hostels.