Jare Olukotun
The Igbogbo Students’ Union (ISU) kicked – off the 2025 Children Fund (C.H.E.F) Week on Wednesday with the aim of addressing the increasing incidence of street begging and the learning gaps affecting children and youth.
This year’s edition is themed: “RESCUING DREAMS: Combating Learning Gaps and Street Begging through Inclusive Education”, with inter – school debate and Spelling Bee organized by the union at the AOSTEM Centre, Igbogbo. The contest held among 30 schools with 129 pupils and students in attendance, accompanied by 30 tutors.
The programme sponsored by the All Progressives Congress (APC) chairmanship candidate for the forthcoming council elections in Igbogbo/Baiyeku Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Hammed Olalekan Aroyewun (HOA), is aimed at inspiring academic excellence and to spotlight the value of inclusive education as a tool for societal transformation.
While the primary school pupils engaged in spelling bee, the junior and senior secondary schools engaged in debate competitions.
Students from the junior schools debated on the opposing topics: ‘Students Fail Exams Because They Do Not Read Enough’ and ‘Parents Should be Punished If Their Can hildren Are Seen Begging’ and the senior students confronted themselves in: ‘The Government Is More Responsible than Parents for the Rise in Street Begging Among School-age Children’ and ;Failure in WAEC and JAMB Is A Reflection of Students’ Laziness, not the Education System’
At the end of the contest, four schools qualified for the finals from the primary school category -Movers Private School, Gold Line Private School, Methodist Primary School, Igbogbo and Queen Betty Private School, while five junior schools qualified for the final -Movers Private School, Queen Betty Private School, Oreyo Junior Grammar School, Community Junior Secondary School, Baiyeku and Reri Junior Secondary School, Oreta.
Another set of five schools also qualified for the senior school debate finals, they are – Community Senior Secondary School, Baiyeku, Elepe Senior Secondary School, Elepe, Reri Senior Secondary School, Oreta, Lagos State Civil Service Senior Model College, Igbogbo and Keme-Balogun College, Ibeshe.
Among distinguished personalities that graced the event were Alhaji Kudus Oduntan, Director, AOSTEM Centre, Hon. Ogunlaja Olayinka, Supervisor for Primary Health, Igbogbo/Baiyeku LCDA and former ISU President, 1999 & Coordinator, AOSTEM Centre, Mr. Soberu, and Mrs. Yetunde Badejo among others. The guests lauded the initiative, describing it as timely and impactful one.
