L-R: Uchechukwu Golden, 2nd runner-up; Emmanuella Nnadi, 1st runner-up; Serge Noujaim, Chief Executive Officer, Cool FM, Wazobia FM, and Nigeria Info FM; Tanvita Koushik, Winner; and Emmanuel Busari, 3rd runner-up at the presentation of awards for the maiden edition of the “I Beg To Differ” Student Debate Tournament.
By Chioma Obinna
After weeks of intensive debates on national socio-economic and political issues, Tanvita Koushik, a 13-year-old student of Avic-Cenna International School has emerged as the overall winner of the maiden edition of Nigeria Info’s “I Beg To Differ” student debate competition.
The debate competition, which commenced in November 2021, featured hundreds of secondary school students across Lagos State between the ages of 13 to 17 years.
The competition which was part of activities to mark Nigeria Info’s 10 years anniversary of quality broadcasting across the country while also creating a platform to develop the psychological abilities of the youths was broadcast live on Nigeria Info’s Hard Facts Show.
Tanvita defeated Emmanuella Nnadi from Vicmob High School, Lagos State, after debating on two socioeconomically-related topics which were centered on the ban of commercial motorcycle operations across Lagos State and the battle for the control of Value Added Tax (VAT) between the state governments and the Federal Government.
Speaking on the competition, Serge Noujaim, the Chief Executive Officer of Cool FM, Nigeria Info, and Wazobia FM, who congratulated the finalists for their courage to make it through the various rounds of the debate said he was confident that the experiences garnered from the “I Beg To Differ” Student Debate Tournament will be cherished.
Sharing her excitement, Tanvita Koushik, expressed gratitude to everyone who helped her in accomplishing the feat.
“I feel grateful to everyone who has helped me, particularly my family, my teachers, and my school. I am confident that I could not have done this all by myself without their support,” she said.
Tanvita was awarded N1 million, a desktop computer, an HP printer, and a Blue-gate UPS, while the first-runner up, Emmanuella Nnadi received N250,000 and a Nintendo Switch.
The second-runner up, Uchechukwu Golden from Saint Saviours High School, also received N150,000, a JBL bluetooth speaker, and a Porodo smartwatch, while the third-runner up, Emmanuel Busari from Ifako International School won N50,000.
The “I Beg To Differ” Student Debate Tournament is a one of the many initiatives of Nigeria Info that seeks to develop the intellectual capacity of Nigerian students through healthy debate competitions.
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