In what may be viewed as an overreach of administrative constraint affectiy the senior section of Community Secondary School, CSS, Bunu in Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State, the students have staged a peaceful protest against their principal for alleged acts of extortion.
In the early hours of Wednesday, October 21, 2026, the aggrieved students conducted the planned and well organised demonstration from the school premises unto the main road leading to the heart of the community, singing slogans that clearly transmit their message, The Principal Must Go!
They carried placards with various inscriptions indicating the accusations against the Principal, Gbarawi Nathaniel, calling on the Commissioner of Education to intervene in the situation with an urgent replacement in the school’s administration.
Glancing at the placards raised high by the protesters one could read messages such as: “He Charges Us N50,000 For WAEC Registration When Government Has Paid For It”; “He Collected Our N13,000 Without Doing Interhouse Sports”; “He Constantly Sent Us Home For Admission Fee (N20,000), We Are Tired Of Payment”; “He Sold Us Free WAEC Calculator For N10,000”; “We Need New Principal”, etc.
During the protest, the school’s Senior Prefect (boys), Goka Sule, who led the demonstration, presented a letter to the community’s paramount ruler, highlighting the students’ concerns regarding what they described as gross misconduct by their principal.
The students who were unanimous in their quest also called on the Rivers State Government, the community leadership and educational authorities to respond swiftly to these allegations and ensure that their academic interests were safeguarded.
The mass action has been described as significant for various reasons by observers. Some said the bold stance by the teenagers represents an undeniable fact that minors too could express their grievances in a well coordinated and orderly manner.
Others noted that the quest for fair practices and concern about injustice are inherent within human beings, irrespective of age or race.
