ALLEGATIONS of bullying culture at Lead British School in Abuja have generated outrage among Nigerians.
On the night of Monday, April 22, An X user, @mooyeeeeeee, posted two videos of a female student being bullied by yet-to-be-identified girls and their male counterparts at Lead British International School, Abuja.
In the video, which has now become viral and led to serious outbursts on social media, particularly X, the victim was seen being slapped repeatedly by another female student while asking, “Who broke my heart? Answer me”
The ICIR counted six aggressive slaps in one video. In another, the female student who was being bullied sat down beside a male colleague and was slapped by the same girl and another on 12 different occasions.
The videos showed that the incident happened in the school vicinity with no fewer than four spectators, who were believed to be part of the bully caucus watching. They were laughing as they videoed the attack.
Earlier, the X user, before posting the video, appealed to Nigerians to make it go viral so that justice could be sought for the bullied girl.
The user wrote: “There’s a video I’m about to post. I need you guys to help me get justice for (sic). She was bullied in her school by her classmates at Lead British School, Abuja. Please make it go viral so she can get justice.”
The posts sparked wild reactions from Nigerians, with many calling for immediate sanctioning of the school and arrest of the bullying students.
They also called on the Nigerian authorities to probe the school management, noting that the incident might not be the first of its kind in the school.
Is bullying a culture in Lead British school?
Lead British International School boasts on its website of its responsibility for nurturing knowledgeable, high achievers and 21st-century leaders. However, other allegations on social media of student bullying in the school leave a dent in its image.
The ICIR observed another video of a student of the school being beaten by a group of students.
Two students slapped the student, who appeared to have been instructed to kneel down before another student paved the way for his leave.
Also, another user, @sadiqGsadiq, posted a screenshot alleging that bullying is one of the biggest issues in the school.
The screenshot alleged that another student of the school cut her classmate with a knife but was only given a two-day suspension.
“Bullying is one of the biggest issues in Lead British International School. And the worst thing is that they don’t even take serious action for it. The punishment they use is always packing trash like…does that make sense? Will packing of trash stop me from bullying someone? It does not even make sense, to be honest.
“The school is always trying to hide things like this. When things like this happen, and we tell our parents, our parents think we are being dramatic. That’s why we all need you to put back the post and bring awareness because it needs to stop.
“When I told my muim, she said I was lying. It was when I showed her the video that she believed me.
“Let me tell you something: worst things have happened. There was a time when a girl brought a knife or a paper cutter and used it to slice a boy’s hand. The boy was in year 7. He had to get stitches, and the girl’s punishment was two days suspension because, allegedly, her parents paid the school or something,” the screenshot read.
We’ll work with the perpetrators’ families to offer counselling, disciplinary measures – Management
Reacting to the circulating video, the school management, in a statement posted on its Facebook page on Tuesday, April 23, said it had constituted an investigation team to probe the new video involving the girl whose videos emerged most recently.
The school promised to work with the perpetrators and their families to counsel and discipline them.
While also noting that it was committed to providing a safe and supportive learning environment for all our students, the institution said it had initiated the process of reaching out to the victim and her family to provide support, including access to counselling services, and to help them cope with the emotional and psychological impact of the incident.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M