The Lead British International School (LBIS), Abuja said on Tuesday that it has appointed a dedicated team to investigate the case of bullying among some of its students.

Multiple video footage of students of the school assaulting their fellow students surfaced and went viral on social media on Monday.

In one of the videos, a group of four female students were seen hitting another female student on her cheek while she sat helplessly. “Who is the boy? What is the boy’s name,” they asked repeatedly while hitting her.

In another video, the same girl was standing helplessly as another student hit her multiple times. “Who broke my heart,” she asked, accompanying the question with an assault on the face. In all the videos, the girl being assaulted was quiet and took in all the hitting without retaliating.

Some social media users claimed the assaulted girl in the video was the daughter of Daniel Bwala, a former spokeperson to the presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar. But Mr Bwala told PREMIUM TIMES on Tuesday morning that the girl in question was not his daughter.

“She is not my daughter and I don’t know her, nor have I any child in that school,” he told our reporter in a text. “My children are all in the UK. Trust me if she is my daughter she would not take that assault without a fight.”

LBIS Speaks

In a statement signed by the Head of School, Abraham Ogunkanmbi, LBIS noted that the school has initiated an investigation and appointed a dedicated team to conduct a ‘thorough inquiry’ into the matter.

Mr Ogunakanmbi said the team is currently gathering information including the review of the video footage and interviewing witnesses to understand the full scope of the incident and identify the immediate and remote causes.

He added that the school has also reached out to the families of both the perpetrators and the victims to offer them counselling and disciplinary measures as appropriate.

The statement reads in part: “Lead British International School, Abuja is deeply concerned about the recent incident of bullying that has come to light, and want to assure our school community and the public, that we are taking this matter very seriously. We are committed to providing a safe and supportive learning environment for all our students,”

“Hence, upon learning of the incident, we initiated the process of reaching out to the victim and family with a view to providing support, including access to counseling services to help them cope with the emotional and psychological impact of the incident.”

The school added that it would be implementing educational programmes and workshops for students, staff, and parents to raise awareness about bullying and its consequences.

It also appealed to social media users to refrain from further sharing the video clips of the incident.

“We want to reassure our school community and the public that we are taking all necessary steps to address this isolated incident and prevent a recurrence. We are committed to fostering a culture of kindness, respect, and empathy at Lead British International School Abuja, where every student feels safe, valued, and respected.

“LBIS appeals to members of the public, especially citizen journalists on social media, to refrain from further circulating the horrendous video of the incident, to protect the minors involved and their families.”

Qosim Suleiman is a reporter at Premium Times in partnership with Report for the World, which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe