‘Never Stay Silent’: Experts Challenge Girls To Resist Abuse, Discrimination

Child rights advocates have urged girls to speak out against abuse, seek help when their rights are threatened and take responsibility for shaping their futures.

They advised on Her Rights, Her Voice, Her Future, a programme organised by Olumawu School for students in the Federal Capital Territory to mark the 2026 International Day of the Girl Child.

The event featured child rights advocates Ambassador Joyce Akubueze, Ifeanyichukwu F. Ifeoma and Emree M. B. Jonah, who encouraged students to recognise their rights and challenge gender-based discrimination.

Akubueze, founder of the Elites Visionary Foundation for Educational Equity and Empowerment (ELVIFEE), shared her experience of childhood sexual abuse, which led to pregnancy, an abortion and her leaving school at 15.

She said threats from her abusers had kept her silent, but she eventually returned to school and rebuilt her life.

Urging the students not to suffer in silence, she said: “When they say you should not talk, that is the time to talk. When they say keep quiet, that is the time to make noise. Your voice matters. Use it. Never let yourself be silenced.”

She advised girls facing abuse or other threats to seek help from trusted adults, teachers, relatives or organisations working to protect children, noting that parents could not address every challenge alone.

The Principal of Olumawu School, Rotimi Jiboku, said the school was strengthening its safeguarding measures to ensure students could report concerns safely.

He said the school had introduced anonymous complaint boxes and recently launched a Safeguarding Week, with female students serving as safeguarding officers.

According to him, school authorities also intervene in cases involving students’ home environments by engaging parents and seeking solutions.

Meanwhile, Jonah, founder of Emree Mondiale Foundation, urged the girls to take their education seriously, develop useful skills and cultivate strong values.

“Your future is not your village. It is not your parents. No one can build your future for you but you. You build your future through education,” he said.

Two Olumawu School students, Aliya Abdulrahman and Akinteye Israel Olatide, said the programme had challenged them to rethink gender stereotypes and the barriers facing girls.

Abdulrahman recalled feeling rejected after being passed over for a public-speaking opportunity in favour of a boy. She said the experience strengthened her resolve to create safe spaces where girls could share their experiences and express themselves freely.

Olatide, one of the boys who attended the event, called for greater support for women in leadership and an end to gender discrimination.

He cited his family’s experience, observing that several of his aunts had missed out on education while male relatives had attended school.

“I always feel sorry for them. I hope it won’t be the same for girls and women of this generation,” he said.

The programme is by Olumawu School, and supported majorly by Emree Mondiale Foundation. Brought together students from schools across the FCT. Nineteen students received the Rising Amazon Award and Creative Excellence Award in recognition of their potential for leadership and contributions to their schools’ creative activities.