A Form Three student, Mark Munene, of Igembe Boys Secondary School, has lost his right eye after he was allegedly hit with a belt by his fellow students.
Speaking to The Standard from his hospital bed at Meru Level Five Hospital where he has been admitted since Sunday, the 17-year-old boy recounted how a group of students, playing with belts, caught him unawares and hit him before he fell to the ground.
He was rushed to Kimongoro Health Centre where medics referred him to the Meru Level Five Hospital for specialised treatment. He was admitted before his right eye was removed.
“I was attended to and a brain scan was taken, but I’m yet to get the results, a surgery was conducted and my eye was removed. The doctor told me the lens was badly damaged and the whole eye needed to be removed for me to survive. I had no other option,” he painfully told the reporter.
The boy’s mother received the shocking news while in Mombasa, where she works, and had to travel to check on her son who was yet to undergo the surgery at the time.
She recalled how she was called by a teacher, who did not reveal her son was in such a bad state. She is now demanding justice for her son and wants to know the truth about what happened.
However, there are conflicting reports regarding the incident. One states that the victim was hit by a window, the preliminary investigations by police state that he fell and got injured while the boy maintains that he was hit by his colleagues who were playing a "belt" game.
“I was shocked when I was told that the eye had to be removed. Some reports from the school administration are misleading. There are those saying he was hit by a window, but my son says he was hit by his fellow students. We hope the truth will come out,” the grief-stricken mother remarked.
Igembe South Police Commander Henry Akong’o confirmed that they were investigating the case.
He added that three boys linked to the incident had already recorded statements at Maua Police Station.
“In our preliminary investigations, we found out that as the boys were playing, one fell down and was injured. However, we have opened an inquiry file and recorded statements from the three boys. Our investigations will help us know if there was any foul-play,” Akong’o revealed.
The school principal, Ephantus Murithi, affirmed the incident and stated that the management was grossly affected by ‘the unfortunate accident’.
