The hall erupted in applause as the final scores were announced. After a rigorous battle of intellect and eloquence, the students of C.M.S Grammar School stood tall, crowned champions of the maiden Dare2Debate competition in Lagos on Saturday.
Their victory, clinched with a narrow two-point margin and a score of 77 points, earned them the top prize of N300,000 and the inaugural title.
The competition, held at the Falana Chambers in Ikeja GRA and organized by HACmedia under its “Think, Speak, and Lead” initiative, provided a platform where future leaders honed their voices amid discussions on national issues. For the winning team from C.M.S Grammar, the triumph was the culmination of weeks of preparation in critical thinking and public speaking.
“The essence is to train youth on public speaking, critical thinking, and mind management,” said Davies Ikpoyi, lead organizer of Dare2Debate, who stood proudly with the victorious students. “This is not a show of force, but a battle with words, knowledge, and weight.”
The day’s intellectual fervor was amplified by a special guest: renowned human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana. Addressing the young orators and attendees, Falana pivoted from celebrating their achievement to issuing a stark, protective challenge for their generation. He called for social media access to be restricted in Nigeria for individuals under 16, aligning with global movements to shield youth from digital harms.
“There is an ongoing debate around the world,” Falana stated. “Some countries are restricting it. Australia has just insisted that you cannot access social media if you are under 16.” He argued that such regulation is inevitable for Nigeria, which he described as a “neo-colonial” country often influenced by policies from nations like the U.S. and U.K. “It certainly has to be regulated in the interest of our children,” he asserted.
Falana also tackled complex socio-economic themes, rejecting the idea that Nigerians are inherently criminal. “Nigerians are not criminals,” he countered, attributing crime to poverty and unemployment fostered by governmental neglect. He critiqued the national attitude toward labor and a “distorted educational system” that devalues skilled trades, leaving vacancies filled by foreign nationals.
The debate itself saw fierce competition. After preliminary rounds judged by a panel, C.M.S Grammar School (160 points) and Bishop Howells Memorial Grammar School (142 points) advanced to the finals, with Arester Divine School scoring 105 points.
The final clash was intensely close, with Bishop Howells securing a respectable second place with 75 points and a N200,000 prize, and Arester Divine School taking third with 70 points and N100,000. It was CMS that carried the day with 77 points, N300,000, the maiden trophy among other prizes provided by partners including Fidelity Bank, E-transzact, Indomie, SGE, Village Boy, DO, to mention a few.
As the new champions celebrated, their win symbolized more than rhetorical skill, it highlighted the potent synergy of youthful intellect and guided discourse. In a room that had just debated Nigeria’s future, these students, armed with trophies and cash prizes, left not just as winners of a competition, but as emerging voices ready to shape the very society leaders like Falana are urging us to rethink and protect.
