Children’s Day Controversy: Parents accuse NDGA Principal of locking students in uncompleted building
UJE, FCT – Outrage grows over alleged abuse and harsh disciplinary measures at Notre Dame Girls Academy, (NDGA), Kuje on Children’s Day, May 27, 2025, after furious parents confronted the school’s principal over the alleged confinement of Junior Secondary School 2 students in an uncompleted building as punishment for making noise.
The incident, which unfolded during what was supposed to be a joyful celebration, has thrown the all-girls Catholic secondary school into the spotlight for the wrong reasons, drawing attention to a string of troubling allegations about its disciplinary practices.
Notre Dame Girls Academy, managed by the Notre Dame Sisters and known for its strict moral and academic reputation, is now facing criticism from concerned parents who say the school has crossed the line into outright abuse.
According to a parent who spoke under the condition of anonymity, the Children’s Day punishment was not an isolated case. “It was not the first time children of the popular college would be subjected to such ill-treatment,” the parent alleged. “Students are mercilessly flogged at any little provocation—by the principal herself and other staff as well.”
The parent added that denying students meals is a common practice used as punishment, a tactic they say has affected some students’ health and well-being. “The children are not well-fed. They are subjected to all kinds of ill-treatment like merciless, careless, and unnecessary flogging. The principal manipulates students into making confessions and uses those confessions against them,” the parent said.
Another source claimed the principal often resorts to cursing students during prayers to instill fear, a tactic described as mentally and emotionally damaging. “This lackadaisical attitude is affecting the children mentally, socially, and academically,” the source said.
More disturbing are allegations that students are forced to kneel on hot coal tar under the sun or serve long hours of punishment that cause them to miss classes or stay up late into the night. “This could be devastating to their mental and physical health,” the source noted.
The Children’s Day incident appears to have been the tipping point. Parents were reportedly outraged after learning that JSS 2 students were excluded from the celebration and instead locked in an uncompleted structure near the hostel. The reason, according to reports, was a noise-related offense and an accusation—later said to be exaggerated—of vandalizing the principal’s car.
One parent said, “Asking children between the ages of 10 and 16 to go without meals as a form of discipline is unacceptable, yet this is the norm at NDGA.”
Several parents allegedly confronted the principal over the incident, leading to a heated exchange. Meanwhile, concerns have been raised about the ineffectiveness of the school’s Parents Teachers Association (PTA), which some claim has been compromised and now fails to act as a check on the administration.
“The PTA that is supposed to regulate and intervene in these issues has been compromised,” a source stated. “This has given the school management unchecked powers, leaving the children vulnerable.”
Attempts to get an official response from the school were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.
The incident has prompted calls for an urgent investigation by educational authorities and child welfare agencies into the school’s disciplinary methods and overall treatment of students.
