(Trinidad Express) Twelve-year-old Jayden Persad, the boy who wrote the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) examination two days after his family was attacked in a home invasion has passed for his first choice, Naparima College.
The San Fernando TML Primary School pupil and his parents were tied up and beaten by seven men who broke into their home at Palmyra Village in August, two days before the SEA examination.
His father, Ramchand Persad, owns a hardware next door.
In an interview yesterday, his mother, Cynthia Persad, said her son was bruised and traumatised by the incident.
“We had an emergency meeting with the school principal, his teacher and the guidance counsellor and we had the option to not write the exam on August 20. It was not an easy decision. In the end we agreed he will go ahead and write the exam. So 30 hours after my son was attacked by these men he was writing the most important examination in a child’s life,” she said.
Persad said her son exited the examination room satisfied with his performance. “He told me he thinks he did well. The Covid-19 pandemic had created a lot of hiccups for the children but his teacher was very committed and he also had extra classes on Zoom,” he said.
Persad said her son worked hard despite the Covid-19 restrictions.
Persad, a mother of one, recalled the day her family was attacked and “robbed of our peace of mind”.
She said: “We were all asleep in the same bedroom that night. We were awakened by men who were already inside our bedroom. They turned on the lights and shouted ‘bandits’. We were traumatised for an hour.”
Persad, her husband and son were tied up and beaten by seven masked men who had broken into their home. The men robbed the family of jewelry and cash, including her son’s savings.
Her husband was then taken to the business place next door and forced to hand over cash.
The bandits were never arrested, she said.
“We have had many sleepless nights since then. We wake at that evil hour and are afraid of what to expect,” she said.
But Jayden’s SEA result has brought happiness to the family again, she said.
“He was looking forward to the results. We are a close family so we had a lot of support and love when the incident happened. Now, everyone is celebrating,” she said.
Jayden wants to become an architect or civil engineer, his mother said. His real passion is however cricket.
And since the family is unable to take Jayden on a vacation to celebrate his achievements, Persad said his stolen savings would be replaced by his loved ones.
“I want to thank Jayden’s teacher, Miss Rabia, who worked tirelessly and who supported him and all her students,” she said.
Persad said she was also pleased that Jayden’s classmate, Ameera Beekhoo, secured the top SEA place this year.
