By Tare Youdeowei

The 14th edition of Lagos State Ministry of Education Spelling Bee Competition has held, with Master Edun Olabanji of Army Children Senior Secondary School, Onigbongbo in first position.

The competition, which was  initiated in 2001 by New Era Foundation under the leadership of Senator Oluremi Tinubu, had competitors from the six educational districts of the state. This comprised of 57 state public schools in 57 Local Government Areas and Local Council Development Areas. Thus, 57 pupils competed to be the 14th One Day Governor of Lagos State.

In her address, Commissioner of Education, Mrs Olayinka Oladunjoye, explained that the competition which was adopted by the ministry in 2006, is tailored towards helping pupils develop their spelling, vocabulary, English language usage, confidence and reading habits, that would lead to better academic performance, with a view of preparing them for the future.

Six rounds of words were thrown at the pupils by the bee master, Mr Ojitiku Moronfolu, to be spelt correctly. Incorrect spelling eliminated 54 pupils leaving three at the final stage.

Spelling the word Cockaleekie correctly, 15 year old Master Edun Olabanji became Lagos State’s One Day Governor with a cheque of N250,000. 15-year-old Miss Azeez Blessing of Keme Balogun Senior College, Ibeshe, grabbed the second price of N150,000 by spelling the word Fettuccine, while Master Macaulay Elijah of Ojota Senior Secondary, Kosofe, came third with a cheque of N100,000.

The winners thanked Lagos State Government and the Ministry of Education for the opportunity which has made them more confident and better students, as preparation for the spelling bee required discipline and hard work.

Representative of Dame Abimbola Fashola, First Lady of the state, Mrs Azeezat Tijani, wife of the Commissioner of Mineral Resources, expressed profound joy at the extent of intelligence displayed by the pupils as they spelt words that captivated the audience.