•Students march past
Some students in Benin were rushed to the Edo Specialist Hospital yesterday after they collapsed at the Children’s Day celebration held at the Dr Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium.
Those who collapsed were said to have inhaled tear gas fired by security personnel.
The security agent is currently in detention, reports The Nation.
No reason was given by a student who witnessed the incident, and Patrick Ebojele, chief press secretary to Governor Monday Okpebholo, confirmed it for the action of the security operative.
The students, who did not want their names in print, put the number of those taken to the hospital at three.
“Three students collapsed after the tear gas was fired. One student was injured in the head after a stone was thrown by another student,’’ he said.
Ebojele, however, said all the students, except two, who were rushed to the hospital had been discharged.
He said: “The two students are not seriously injured. Doctors want to observe them overnight. The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education is still at the hospital. The man who used pepper spray has been detained.
“The incident did not happen the way it is being exaggerated. All modalities were put in place to ensure the Children enjoy their day.”
