Pupils of Igbeyin Adun Primary School in Ajeabor, Mushin, Lagos State, stood in the rain on Wednesday. They received school bags from the Mushin Local Government Chairman. During the distribution, the children were made to sing “Mummy, daddy, vote for APC.” The event was captured on video. It circulated on social media. The children are nursery and primary school pupils. They cannot vote. They cannot consent. They were used as campaign props.
Nigerian politicians have used children at campaign events for decades. In 2019, schoolchildren were bussed to APC rallies in Lagos. In 2022, similar scenes occurred in Osun. In 2023, pupils were photographed holding campaign placards in several states. The pattern is consistent. Children are cheap crowd fillers. They generate emotional imagery. They cannot refuse. Schools are public institutions. Using them for partisan purposes breaches the line between education and campaigning.
The distribution was a political event. The school was the venue. The children were the audience and the performers. The rain added indignity. The slogan added indoctrination. The chairman’s office has not commented. The Lagos State Government has not responded. The APC has not issued a statement. The silence is familiar. When viral clips expose misconduct, officials wait for the news cycle to move on.
The bags are the excuse. The slogan is the purpose. A school bag is a gift. A campaign slogan is a message. Combining them turns charity into propaganda. The children do not understand the words they sang. Their parents may not have known. The school may have cooperated. The line was crossed.
Winners: The chairman, who gains a campaign video. The APC, which gets child endorsements. Bloggers who share the clip. The bag supplier, who earns a contract. Losers: The pupils, who stood in the rain. Their parents, who may not have consented. The school, which became a campaign ground. The line between education and politics. The APC, if the backlash grows. Lagos voters, who see the manipulation.
Bottom Line: Children should not be campaign props. A school is not a rally ground. A bag is not worth a slogan. The chairman used children to campaign. That is not charity. It is exploitation.