Sylvester Oromoni. Dowen College.

These two names will ring a bell on the minds of Nigerians for a long time to come.

But not for good. Their story leaves a bitter taste in the mouth, one that arouses a voracious appetite for revenge and untempered justice, and leaves behind a toxic fume of unrestful regret and unbearable pain that even time may find difficult to heal.

Sylvester, a bubbly 12-year-old boy who had a bright future (he wanted to become a pilot, according to his father) was allegedly beaten, assaulted and poisoned by his school mates because he refused to join their cult group. And this allegedly happened right under the nose of guardians and administrators in one of the most expensive boarding schools in Lagos, Dowen College.

But while the news shocked many, what angered most was the first statement released online by the school - a poorly, unempathetic set of paragraphs that were allegedly full of lies and tried to exonerate the school from blame. In fact, in the statement the school called the accusations 'wild social media tales' which were 'strange' and 'unbelievable'.

There was no way such could happen in their 'faith-based' school, with all the anti-bullying policies in place, and their own investigations as well discovered that what happened to the boy was just a mere hip accident on the football field.

Many years ago, when social media was not accessible to many, this would have passed by barely noticed and life would go on. But today, social media has made it nearly impossible to hide the truth with video evidence calling one's bluff. All that is required is a simple upload and click that would send millions of people come knocking on your door in an instant.

But this piece is not about throwing blames. Thankfully, police investigations are ongoing and they will get to the root of the matter and hopefully, bring all culprits and accomplices to book.

This piece is about how schools and their administrators should handle such Public Relations incident when such arises. Dowen College missed it and are paying dearly for it. You shouldn't.

Here are 5 things schools should learn from this unfortunate story.

1. Transparency is key in building trust between your school and the publics. When a negative incident happens, people expect you to be clear and open. While you may not want to expose all details especially if police investigation is ongoing, don't hide behind the screen and dish out half-truths. If you do this and indisputable evidences are released against you, it will be difficult to pull back the rope.

2. Be empathic. Show your compassionate human side. Trying to show you are right while disparaging the situation and people involved will only end up making you look like a monster in the eyes of everyone.

3. Be neutral. In your official statement, don't defend yourself. If you are on the right, the truth will eventually shine for all to see. Keep your language formal, respectful and objective.

4. Beyond putting up anti-bullying policies (or any other policy for that matter), follow it up with appropriate action plan. It should not only end in brochures or posters on school wall. Here are a few ideas of what you can do:

(a) Appoint a trained official that will be in charge of that policy and attend to rising issues efficiently and effectively. He/she will give reports to the school management.

(b) Talk about it on school assembly with drama and other fun activities.

(c) Get an anti-bullying song and teach the learners.

(d) Have anti-bullying forums where learners can ask questions and talk about their experiences.


5. Hire a Public Relations (PR) Officer as a full staff or consultant, as the case may be or your budget allows. These professionals are trained to handle crisis situations online or offline. They are expert at writing the appropriate statements, helping to manage your school's image and keeping your community engaged. Don't do things unprofessionally and end up rending your school's brand and reputation to shreds. You don't want to lose all you have built over the years because a poorly written statement or strategy.

In conclusion, Your school's life is in your hands. Don't wait until a bad thing happens before you act. Dowen College had no idea this would blow up. It could have been any one, any school. Proactiveness is key.

Thank you for reading.

ANUOLUWAPO FRANCIS
CEO - Redigion Media
Social Media |Content |PR
(07030076904)