How Abuja School Emerged Champion In First-Ever MTN ASAP Quiz Competition
Year after year, artistes, corporations and governmental bodies have raised awareness of the rising cases of substance abuse in Nigeria. This awareness has led to several initiatives to sensitize young Nigerians on drug abuse.
One of these many initiatives is the MTN Foundation’s, Anti-Substance Abuse Programme (ASAP). The initiative educates children between the ages of 10 – 25 on substance abuse and its dangers while prioritizing peer counselling and education.
This year, MTN Foundation, in partnership with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), organised a virtual quiz competition to educate students on substance abuse while preparing exciting rewards as reinforcements.
On June 7, MTN Foundation selected 12 schools for the first stage of the quiz competition. Ten of those schools participated and only three schools emerged as finalists. The finalists competed for the top spot on June 14 while answering questions in relation to drug abuse.
Among the three schools for the final stage, Funtaj International School Gudu, Abuja, emerged as the winner of the first-ever ASAP quiz competition. Representatives of the school, Ramat Sakman, Oluwatoyinsola Adeyemi, and Ataba Shehu each received a Samsung Galaxy Tab 8 and learning support materials from MTN Foundation.
As the 1st runner-up, each student of International Quotient Academy, Garki Abuja, won a Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite with learning support materials like books, a bag, and more exciting items. The school was represented by Raheemah Abdulmalik, Fadil Ibrahim and Khadeejah Kamil Sani.
Government Secondary School, Ilorin emerged as the 2nd runner-up with Umar Muhammed Sultan, Abdulazeez Abiola Ahmad and Adesina Yusuf as representatives. Each participant won a Samsung Galaxy Tab A6 with other learning support materials.
According to the Executive Secretary of MTN Foundation, Odunayo Sanya, “the purpose of the competition was for peer education; these contestants will serve as MTN ASAP’s ambassadors.
“We want a drug-free Nigeria, and we are counting on you. We believe through this process we have recruited you as ASAP ambassadors, and you would join us as we work towards creating a drug-free Nigeria,” she said.
On his part, NDLEA’s Agency Secretary, Shadrach Haruna, representing The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), mentioned that the objective of the quiz competition is to provide awareness, build learning opportunities, build coping skills, and encourage peer education.
The 2-hour-long quiz competition was moderated by Dr Ngozi Madubuike and Chinyere Kalu moderated while the results were compiled by the judges, Farida Tukur and Odoemelam Chigbu.
MTN ASAP has been held yearly since 2019 to commemorate the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking (World Drug Day) on June 26.
