Government Day Secondary School Wins by a Whisker in ‘Cultural Pride Breeds Division’ Debate

Government Day Secondary School, Karu, Abuja, has defeated Laurels Model College, Ada-George, Port Harcourt, by the narrowest of margins in a dramatic Group B debate at the I Beg To Differ Tournament of Champions.

The schools debated the motion, “Cultural Pride Breeds Division,” with Laurels Model College arguing in favour and Government Day Secondary School opposing the motion.

Laurels Model College’s Ezeano Princess Amara and Daniella Kenneth Ohaeri argued that cultural pride can become divisive when it turns into superiority, exclusion and discrimination against people from other ethnic groups.

Princess Amara said there is a distinction between celebrating one’s culture and using cultural identity to diminish others, warning that pride can become a tool for exclusion when it creates an “us versus them” mentality.

Daniella Kenneth reinforced the argument, citing examples of xenophobia and identity-based tensions to argue that cultural pride can become harmful when people begin to see others as outsiders.

Government Day Secondary School’s Joseph Majesty and Uko Precious opposed the motion, arguing that cultural pride creates identity, self-worth, belonging and respect for other cultures, rather than division.

Majesty distinguished between healthy cultural pride and superiority, arguing that division comes from identity insecurity, discrimination and the manipulation of cultural differences for political or other interests.

In the rebuttal round, Uko Precious argued that the proposition had confused cultural identity with the weaponisation of identity, saying cultural pride itself does not cause conflict.

The final round saw both teams sharpen their arguments, with Laurels insisting that cultural pride becomes divisive when it creates exclusion, while Government Day maintained that the solution is to address discrimination and political manipulation without suppressing cultural identity.

The debate went down to the wire, with the judges’ scores giving Government Day Secondary School a 69.0 to 68.5 lead before the audience vote was added.

The audience voted 52% to 48% in favour of Laurels Model College, producing a final score of 73.8 points for Government Day Secondary School and 73.7 for Laurels Model College.

Government Day Secondary School therefore emerged winner by just 0.1 point, securing a crucial victory in Group B.

The result keeps the Abuja regional champions in contention, while Laurels Model College, which finished second runner-up at the Port Harcourt regional finals, will have to rely on its remaining opportunities in the competition.