THE remains of the 14-year-old student from Antipolo, Rizal who died several days after he was slapped by his teacher were brought to Camp Crame for an autopsy examination.
Major Sotero Rodrigo, public information officer of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Forensic Group, said the result of the autopsy examination could be the basis of the filing of charges against the teacher of the victim, Francis Jay Gumikib.
“Kung newly inflicted (injury), so makikita doon mga scars or mga bruises and sa autopsy and sa X-ray makikita kung may broken bones. So makikita, ma-differentiate kung newly acquired or matagal na injury,” Rodrigo said in an interview with reporters.
(If it's a newly inflicted injury, you can see the scars or bruises there, and during an autopsy and through an X-ray, you can determine if there are broken bones. So you can differentiate between a newly acquired or long-standing injury.)
“Possible na makita during the autopsy (if the person has a pre-existing medical condition),” he added.
Based on the death certificate released by the Amang Rodriguez Medical Center, Gumikib’s immediate cause of death was global brain edema or the swelling of the brain.
Gumikib died on October 2, 11 days since his teacher collared him, pulled his hair and slapped him after he called for her attention due to his noisy classmates.
According to his mother Elena Minggoy, Gumikib complained of pain in the ear and dizziness following the incident, but he was still able to attend school in the three days that followed.
Gumikib was rushed to the hospital on September 26 due to persistent pain in the ears, dizziness, headache and vomiting and has since been in a comatose state.
The teacher admitted that the incident happened but denied he hit Gumikib too hard.
Minggoy refused to talk to the teacher.
“Hindi ko talaga siya kinausap kasi ayaw ko makapagsalita ng masakit, masaktan siya, masaktan ako, hindi po kasi ako ganung tao. Kahit sabihin na nasaktan ako, ayaw ko magbitaw ng masakit na salita para sa anak ko,” Minggoy said.
I didn't really talk to him because I didn't want to say hurtful things. I didn't want him to get hurt, and I didn't want to get hurt either because I'm not that kind of person. Even though I was hurt, I didn't want to say hurtful words for my child’s dignity.)
She said they will be filing charges, noting that having an amicable settlement will never be an option.
“Siyempre sa nangyari sa anak ko talagang kung siya ang dahilan ng pagkamatay ng anak yun talaga ang plano na makasuhan siya. Hustisya ang kahilingan ko sa pagkamatay ng anak ko,” said Minggoy.
(Of course, considering what happened to my child, if he is indeed the reason for my child's death, then filing charges against him is really the plan. Justice is what I seek for the death of my child.)
“Hindi na po (if makikipagayos siya). Ganun lang ba ang buhay ng anak ko? Hindi na,” she added.
(There will be no reconciliation. Is that all there is to my child's life? No.)
Antipolo police chief Lieutenant Colonel Ryan Manongdo said they are conducting a case build-up against the teacher, making sure that charges that will be filed against her will be airtight.
“Kung mapag-aalaman natin na may koneksyon o diretso na koneksyon ‘yung pagbubuhat ng kamay ng teacher sa pagkamatay ng bata ay magfile kami ng complaint na homicide in relation to RA (Republic Act) 7610 or ‘yung Anti-child Abuse Law,” Manongdo said.
(If we find out that there is a direct connection between the teacher's actions and the child's death, we will file a complaint for homicide in relation to RA 7610 or the Anti-Child Abuse Law.)
“Although gusto namin mapabilis ito, pero gusto natin makasiguro na to give justice sa pamilya ng biktima is hindi natin minamadali and we are preparing enough time and documents para mabigyan natin ng magandang laban ‘yung complaint na ipa-file natin,” he added.
(Although we want to expedite this, we also want to ensure that we give justice to the victim's family, so we are not rushing it. We are taking the time to prepare the necessary documents to make sure that we have a strong case for the complaint we will file.) (SunStar Philippines)