Emeka Nwogbo, the teacher at Arise and Shine Nursery and Primary School who is alleged to have flogged 19-month-old Obinna Udeze to death has denied the act.
When paraded before journalists by the police on Wednesday, Nwogbo said that there must be other underlying issues that killed Udeze as he claimed the child did not die while he was being punished.
Nwogbo said he flogged the late Obinna as he ought to flog ’a baby’ and that the child was punished because he pushed another child.
Nwogbo said, “I did not cane the child to death, I flogged him as I’m supposed to flog a child. I flogged him as little as I can, I did not kill the child. I am not responsible for his death. They should go and check this thing very well. I flogged the child because he pushed another child and hit the other child’s head.”
Addressing journalists, the state police commissioner, Ari Muhammed Ali said a post mortem will be conducted to determine the cause of death of the deceased child.
He said, ”Post mortem examination will be carried out, to ascertain at least the cause of death.”
The late Obinna was hospitalized after he was allegedly given 31 strokes of the cane for playing with water on Monday.
Obinna was taken to the Federal Medical Centre, Asaba where he eventually died on Saturday morning, February 12.